Son of the Snakes
by Hebi-sama-teme
Summary: Naruto is a little blonde bundle of energy and happiness. Or so he appears to be. On the inside he is suffering and no one seems to care. Until one day when a man offers him a chance for revenge. How far will he sink into darkness to get his revenge? Who can show him the light? If you like the story please R&R!
1. Chapter 1: The Way It Froze

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

Summary: Naruto is a little blonde bundle of energy and happiness. Or so he appears to be. On the inside he is suffering and no one seems to care. Until one day when a man offers him a chance for revenge. How far will he sink into darkness to get his revenge? Who can show him the light?

A/N: Well here it is. The start of my very first Fan Fic! Woot Woot! This fic will be far from the normal kind. This fic focuses more on the dark aspect of shinobi life. Not everything is happy. Not everything turns out right. With that being said on with the story!  
-"Speech"  
**  
"Angry speech/Jutsu/Summon"**  
_  
'Thoughts/ memories'  
__**  
'Demonic thoughts'**_

This story is rated M for Violence, Blood/Gore, and Adult themes.

Today started out like any other day. The Sun came up and shone brightly over the village and its inhabitants. The day seemed to be full of happy people except two people. Deep in one of Konoha's abandon buildings was a man in a room few knew about. This room was full of research data and looked very much like a science lab with test tubes scattered about and papers seemingly everywhere. The man however was no ordinary man. This man had smooth black hair that reached about mid-way to his back. With skin as pale as the brightest moonlight. Eyes that were silted just like a snake's eyes would be. This man was dressed in the typical jonin attire for the village. This man was none other than the legendary snake sannin, Orochimaru. He had a look of true worry on his face as he was next to a woman giving birth. This woman had long golden hair and deep blue eyes. She had beautiful tan and soft skin that was softer than the finest silk. She had a nice shapely body as well that was in extraordinary pain at the moment. Orochimaru held onto her had for reassurance although he was sweating from nervousness just as badly. The woman was Namikaze Minati, The Yondamine Hokage of Konohagakure

"Hang in there my love. You are almost there. Just a little while longer then you are done." He does his best to attempt to soothe her pain but to avail. Instead he is greeted with the screech of his lovers' voice. He ran his hand through her hair that was beginning to become heavy with sweat.  
Finally having recovered enough energy despite her body being racked with pain she managed to get out. "I swear to Kami! I am never having another child again!" She roared. Orochimaru dared to let a small chuckle escape his lips. Minati increased the strength on her grip on his hand as she let out an ear piercing scream. Lucky for privacy seals eh? A medical Nin was with the two as she was delivering the baby.

"That's it Lady Hokage, just one more good push and the baby will be out." Hearing these words the couple braced for the final push. Minati pushed everything she had into it and gave one final grunt. What happened next was a moment the two will never forget. The medic Nin brought the young baby around. The baby boy was almost and exact copy of his father. He had pale skin, smooth pitch black hair and snake like eyes. But instead of yellow they were blue silted. The boy also had his father's eye markings. Only these ones were much smaller and were barely noticeable. He had more of his mother's rounder face and nose. The couple looked at the baby and smiled genuinely at the happiness the two felt just by merely looking at the boy.

"What should we name him?" Minati asked.

"You know already what we decided on." Orochimaru answered with a slight grin.

"I know. Just want to make sure you weren't having second thoughts." Minati clarified.

"Not in my wildest dream would I think of changing the name of our little boy…..Naruto."

The two smiled and let the medical nurse put the baby in their private baby section and the two promptly fell asleep from exhaustion. Thus putting an end to the day of October 9th….

Orochimaru was dreaming a rather pleasant dream about family life and growing with a child. As he did so he reflected on his life before meeting The Yondamine. His reputation as a psycho and malevolent spirit was and is well warranted. He has put people through rough and grueling experiences in his life time ranging from sick and twisted DNA experiments to torture so he could learn more about the body. He was every bit as sadistic as people said he was. There was no doubt in his mind that he was a vile creature of humanity. He would have remained this way and maybe gotten worse if not for the fateful day he made a change. To think it was almost a year ago this day that it happened.

(Flashback)

It was late. Nearing around midnight and he was hard at work trying to discover the secret to everlasting life so that no one would have to die again. The pain of losing someone close to you hurt him more than he dared to admit. When his parents died he broke. He couldn't handle it anymore. He wanted to make sure that never happened again. He stopped for a brief moment to wipe his brow from the sweat and take a relaxing breath. He remembered who was trying so hard for. A few months ago he met a girl. Now normally he can brush off woman seeing as how they hate and generally avoid him anyhow. This woman on the other hand managed to capture his attention. Him! The almighty snake sannin! He was captivated by her stunning beauty and grace and she seemed to almost glide along the streets of Konoha. He was infatuated with her presence and wanted to see her more. He smiled at this memory and with renewed resolve pushed on with his experiments. Another two hours went by in seemingly seconds until he was disrupted by a knocking sound on the laboratory door. His face formed a frown and he went to the door. If it was Kabuto he was going to offer him as a sacrifice to the Snake Lord Manda. Imagine his surprise when he opened the door to find his young lover Minati standing before him with an upset look on her face.

With a stunned expression on his face he asked "Mina-chan what are you doing here at this late of hour?" He asked while regaining his composure.

"I came to talk to you." She looked him dead in the silted eye and spoke with a conviction few had ever seen from her. "You have to stop this. These needless experiments are causing the village to hate and fear you! Even your own sensei is worried about you." She paused for a moment letting the words sink in. "I'm worried about you." She said with a concerned look on her face and tears threating to leave her eyes.

Hearing the first few words from her made him mad. More so then he has been in a long time. Who was she to say this research was pointless?! This was his life's goal. His dream to fulfill and purpose in life and he was going to accomplish this no matter what. How could she just waltz in his lab and tell him that his dream was corrupt! He was ready to reply in anger when he gazed upon her face. The sight of tears and a quivering lip made his entire resolve crumble. He silently cursed him for letting someone get so close to his heart again.

"I'm doing this for the greater good. So people don't have to die." He said quietly as in a hope that she would not hear him.

"The "greater good" doesn't see it that way. Orochimaru-kun they will never let us be together unless you change your ways. They will force us to be apart. I… I don't know if I could live like that." She let her heart's depression show in her words as they left her lips.

Orochimaru stood in the door way for what seemed like hours of thinking. His heart, as cold as it was, was fighting against his brain. In his mind a war was begin raged between the two sides of his consciousness. His logical side stated _'Forget her! For the good of the world we need to keep doing this! Nothing will stand in our way!'_ The newly formed good natured side stated_ 'Be that as it may. Are you really willing to give up the love that has made us feeling more alive than ever before?'_ These were just some of the thoughts that raged in his head as he made his choice. After 15 long minutes he turned around and after running through some hand seals fired a katon jutsu and shut the lab door. Smiling as he took his lover back their home for the night with the silent promise to turn over a new leaf and be a better person.

As they were walking back hand in hand he thought to himself. _'I will do whatever I must to make her happy even if it means giving up my dream of immortality.'_

(Flashback End)

The couple was sleeping soundly on the day of October 10th, their baby boy's official birthday. The day had pasted normally as Minati had Hiruzen, The Sandaime Hokage, take over for a few days while she recovered. Orochimaru slowly lifted his eye lids and wondered why he was her for a brief moment. Then the memories came rushing in like a flood and brought a smile to his snake like face. He got up ever so gingerly as to not wake up the sleeping woman next to him. He silently slipped through the door and shut it lightly. He turned around and began walking down the hall towards the baby ward. Once there he turned to the glass window and looked through it. He looked upon the face of his sleeping child with pride and joy. He was marveling at the fact this little tiny human being could cause his heart to unthaw and come beating back to life. He was snapped out of his thoughts when he saw the nurse rushing towards him. Assuming the worse he put on a truly worried expression and turned towards the nurse.

Panting and out of breath she frantically tried to speak "Kyuubi…..village…burning!"

Putting on a steely expression that one could only gain after years of dealing with traumatic experiences he asked her what exactly was going on. "Calm down woman! Now what exactly is happening?"

The nurse did her best to pace herself but she was beyond terrified. "The Kyuubi is attacking the village and everything is burning! The village is doing the best it can to defend itself but nothing seems to be working!"

Fear and panic struck Orochimaru's heart as he thought _'I will not let that demon destroy this village. Not while my lover and son are here!'_ With that he looked the nurse in the eye and with a solid resolution spoke. "Take care of these two here." Not waiting for a response he quickly dashed out of the underground facility and towards the fray and heat of combat.

Upon making it to the top his eyes were instantly greeted with a most devastating display of destruction. Buildings everywhere were on fire. Some were completely smashed into piles of rubble. As he looked around he saw a certain grey haired sensei of his with a long staff and many other ninja doing their best to hold the monster at bay. Deciding to join the fray against the beast Orochimaru leapt over there with blinding speed in the direction of his sensei. While on his way over he heard several jutsu being called out in unison _**Katon: Gokakyuu no jutsu**_ _**(Fire style: Fire ball jutsu)**_ along with several hundred flying explosive tagged kunai. Moments after he heard a roar of pain shoot through the air and almost seemed to make the heavens shake with fear. The demon was stunned but nowhere near beaten.

Upon arrival he was greeted with glares and looks of hatred and contempt while the Sandaime looked with a small smile.

"Nice of you to join us Orochimaru." He said with a small amount of sarcasm in his voice.

Orochimaru looked over to his former sensei with an indifferent expression "I did not come for your sake old man. I came to protect my….precious person and my new born son."

The old Hokage's eyes were wide in shock as he heard the news while the other ninja looked on with curious looks at the pale man's words but before anyone could question him they heard a roar. A roar so terrible and loud with such killing intent behind it most people who were not seasoned veterans of combat fainted or at least dropped to their knees and shook with an intense fear in their bodies. The rest of the ninja force pressed on the fight despite the massive injuries they were taking.

"Well looks like you'll need my help after all kukuku." Orochimaru said with an amused expression.

The Sandaime looked away from him and towards the fox and sighed "This no time for games Orochimaru." He said with a voice so cold the air seemingly dropped a few degrees.

Scoffing at his sensei's words, Orochimaru bite his thumb and went through a series of hand seals and yelled out _**"Kuchiyose no jutsu (Summoning Jutsu)."**_ As he slammed his hands on the ground a large puff of smoke quickly followed after. Once the smoke cleared away Orochimaru was seen on top of the head of a giant purple snake.

Said snake looked around the area trying to determine how he got here. He took a moment to collect himself and take in the scene. There were buildings being destroyed. People were screaming. Fire was everywhere. There was the nine tailed fox causing wanton destruction. Then there was Orochimaru on his head. After collecting all the information the Snake spoke up.

**"Orochimaru, what is the meaning of you summoning me here?"** The enormous purple snake asked.

Orochimaru sighed as he knew it would not be easy to convince the snake lord to help him. Especially in a situation such as this one with such slim looking odds.

"I need your help in defending my son against the Kyuubi." Orochimaru said. Meanwhile the snake raised an eye to look at him and decided he would get the information out of him later.

**"Very well I will help you. Though you should know against the Kyuubi I won't be able to stall for very long." **The snake says with a hint of frustration in his voice.

"Thank you Manda." The pale man said before the two launched into battle against the demon fox.

Hearing loud and thundering explosions going on outside Minati awoke with a startled expression and an uneasy feeling in her stomach. She checked around the room. Orochimaru was nowhere to be found and the nurse was passed out on the floor. Minati threw her legs over the side of the bed and went to go check her pulse. She was alive and her vitals were strong. She wondered what exactly could have caused this. Then it hit her. A wave of killer intent so strong it made her choke on her breath for a second before she regained her composure. 'What in the hell was that?!' she wondered before a loud roar erupted throughout the village followed by a subtle hiss. Deciding that she needed to go prepare for whatever that was she teleported back to her home using her ever famous "_**hiraishin"**_ to get there in a flash.

Once home she immediately got dressed in her Hokage outfit and ran out the door. What she saw was a sight that gripped her heart in fear and refused to let go. She looked in the direction of the most fire and damage and her gaze met the source of it all. There was an enormous red fox with nine tails that could flatten mountains and cause tsunamis. Coiled around this fox was a large purple snake doing the best it could on squeezing the stomach and one of the demons arms while on top of the snake was a white man doing whatever he could to disrupt the fox. She gripped her special kunai and threw it in their direction with only one thought. _'I will do what I must!' _before vanishing in a yellow flash._  
_-  
"Argh!/**Argh!**" Both summon and summoner choked out as the fox they were wrestling with tossed them both off and sent them sailing into the forest ground below. Both of them feeling groggy and off balance did their best to regain their balance and focus. Orochimaru was about ready to attack again when Manda spoke up.

**"I'm afraid you are going to have to continue this on your own. I'm all out of chakra and must leave." **Manda spoke with disdain in his voice but he knew he could not keep this up any longer.

Orochimaru snarled but realized Manda could no longer carry on this fight. He sighed in defeat as he spoke "I understand and thank you for your help" Manda nodded his head before disappearing in a plume of smoke leaving Orochimaru behind to contemplate his next move. He was low on chakra and his summon was gone. He had almost nothing left in the way of ninja tools. He knew something that could work but it would cost him his life once the jutsu was over. _'I will do whatever I must to protect them!' _He decided while making peace with himself. As he began to run through the hand seals he had one additional thought_. 'Please forgive me you two. I do this to protect you both.'_ He thought until he looked up and saw a yellow flash in the air.

Minati landed on top of the towering fox while standing on the head of a large toad. In her arms was a small child with pale skin and black hair wrapped up in a small cloth. She took one long look at the child and smiled as the child opened its eyes and seemingly smiled back at her. Her mind then snapped back to reality as she felt the presence of an elderly man behind her. She turned and nodded to him while telling him to take care of the child. Minati ran through a long and complex series of hand seals before a large and blinding amount of blinding white light came and lit up the entire forest area in which the battle was raging. If one looked hard enough they could see a smile on the soon-to-be-deceased Yondaime's face.

Orochimaru was temporarily blinded by the white light though he knew exactly what was going on. After the aforementioned light was gone he slumped down to his knees from both exhaustion and emotional turmoil. His love was gone and left him alone in this world. He felt a very cold sensation crawl up from his toes and make its way into his heart. He felt cold again and this time he was sure no one on this planet could make him feel warm anymore. All was not lost as he thought. He heard a child screaming. Getting up off of his knees he began to walk over in that direction. After a few minutes of walking he stumbled upon a most odd candle lit sight with a baby in the center of the odd display. As if this wasn't enough there was his old Sensei Hiruzen and teammate Jiraiya both standing above the baby.

Orochimaru raised an eyebrow at how familiar the boy looked to the Yondaime. He decided to question them. "Is that baby what I think it is?" he asked them with barely contained sadness and rage.

Hiruzen decided to speak up on their behalf. "Yes it is. This is your son. I placed a seal on him that would hide his looks so no one would know he is your child. He is also the container for the fox demon now as well." He spoke with a solemn voice and expression.

Orochimaru nearly collapsed right there after hearing all of this. With an expression of uncontrolled rage he spoke "How dare you hide his features! He has nothing to be ashamed of!" After calming down a bit he looked down and spoke quietly "Let me take him and leave. You know how the villagers would treat him now that he carries a demon inside of him."

The old Hokage sighed and said "I can't let that happen. With Konoha the way it is now we will need all the help we can get. This young boy will grow up to be a splendid shinobi. I can't let him leave."

Orochimaru looked at the two with disgust but he knew he could not fight them off the way he was now. Instead he left them with a few parting words "I will be back for my son one day and when I do I will burn this place to the ground!" He turned and took off into the forest.

The other two sighed and turned towards the now screaming blonde haired, blue-eyed baby. They would need to be extra cautious with him now. 


	2. Chapter 2: Pale

**Chapter 2: Pale**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Summary: Moving on with the story after chapter one. Orochimaru swore his revenge against the village for forcing his son into an unfavorable situation. How will Naruto cope with the village and its hate? What is the sneaky snake up to now that he is gone?  
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"Speech"  
**  
"Angry speech/Jutsu/Summon"**  
_  
'Thoughts/ memories'  
__**  
'Demonic thoughts'  
**_ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  
This story is rated M for Violence, Blood/Gore, and Adult themes.  
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Five years have passed. Five long grueling years of pain over the death of loved ones, agony over finances and most of all hate directed at one boy. This young five year old boy had wild spikey beach blond hair with beautiful sun kissed skin and deep oceanic blue eyes that can make you feel lost in them. The boy had a name, his name was Uzumaki Naruto. On most days he was happy and smiling. If he wasn't out eating ramen at his favorite stand then he was out causing trouble just to get attention. Unfortunately, he also incurred the wrath of his jiji-san, The Sandaime Hokage. Yes life was a joyful little bundle for our favorite blond. Or so he would have everyone believe. In reality Naruto just wanted a friend to play with. Where ever he would go people would avoid him and give him glares if he was lucky. Sometimes the people rioted and a group of eight to twelve people would find him and "Teach him a lesson in respect" as they put it leaving the boy broken and battered. If it wasn't for the blasted demon fox Naruto would have been long dead. Not just from the occasional brutal beating but also from malnourishment and often food poisoning. Try as he might he never seemed to be able to find someone he could call his friend.

As he strolled on down the street he received the very familiar looks of hate and disgust as he walked by but as he did so he kept on thinking _'I'll be the greatest Hokage ever! Then they will all respect me!' _he turned on his sun light bright smile as he walked down the street with his hands behind his head. Yep today was shaping up to be a nice day for him until he heard a scream and decided to investigate.  
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Hyuuga Hinata was a small and meek five year old girl. She had short lavender hair and pale pupil-less eyes. She had a skin tone that looked like it was forged from a kiss from the moon. She had on blue sandals and a blue shirt with the Hyuuga symbol on the back. She was abnormally shy and it caused her to have problems with her training as she felt she always failed at it. Most days for her were fine as long as she stayed quiet and by her mother's side. Today was not such a good day for the young heiress.

Hinata was surrounded by four boys in the middle of the park she was at. She tried to avoid them and walk past them when one of them tripped her and made her face crash into the earth floor.

"Hey I kinda like that look on her!" one of the bullies said with a grin on his face.

"Yeah that outta teach her for thinking she is better than the rest of us!" the leader of the group stated.

Hinata turned towards them and tried not to cry as to make the situation worse "I-I-I-don't t-think I'm better than y-you I…."

She was cut off as she heard a loud scoff from the biggest boy there "You what? Were you gunna say you know you're better than us?!" the boy asked in false rage.

"N-no! I w-was going to say-." Hinata stuttered to get out before she was met with a hand across her face. The resulting smack was a loud enough to draw a lot of unneeded attention if they were in a public area which they were not.

"I don't care what you have to say!" the leader bellowed out as he readied into a fighting position.

Sensing danger and pain were bound to follow that swift strike Hinata did the only thing she could. She started sobbing and crying loudly hoping to be heard. Lucky for her a certain blonde had heard her and was on his way.  
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Naruto, upon hearing the scream and sobs dashed into the public park in which they were echoing from. He noticed at this point his ears always seemed to hear the strangest thing. Brushing the thought aside he focused on the sound of the scream and put all his energy into his tiny legs to carry him there. Lucky for him the park wasn't far so he would be able to get there in a matter of minutes. Once there he looked upon the scene and was immediately angry. There was a little girl with pale eyes and a red handprint on her face and she was surrounded by 4 boys with the tallest one having his hand cocked back ready and able to deliver another foul swing. The aforementioned bully was about to do just that when something caught his hand and refused to let go.

"What the-" the leader bully let out as his hand was caught. Hinata dared to look up to see what had stopped the impending smack. She rested her puffy bloodshot pale eyes on a little blonde boy with slightly tanned skin and a white shirt with black pants on and in his hand was an arm. She traced the arm back to its owner and found that it belonged to the bully that was about to smack her. He had stopped the hit!

"You little bra- Hey wait a minute! I know you! You're the little demon brat my parents always tell me about. They said you killed a lot of innocent people demon. Hey guys let's get him instead then we can go back to the Hyuuga girl!" the boys nodded in unison and turned to face Naruto only to find him…gone.

"Where did he go?" one of the boys asked.

"I have no ide- Look out!" the leader said as he looked up to see a beehive land not two inches in front of him. The enraged bees looked for the first thing to release their pent up anger on and fortunately or unfortunately in the case of the boys. The bees found their mark and speedily chased the boys out of the park.

Smiling his pearly white smile he lowered his hand down to help the pale girl up. He puffed up his chest a bit and stated "I'm Uzumaki Naruto! Village prankster and your savior of the day!" The little girl looked at him and giggled as she wiped the tears from her eyes and took his hand to stand up.

"I'm Hyuuga Hinata. T-thank you f-for saving me." She looked down and the ground and began pushing her two index fingers together "I-I'm sorry for b-being weak and unable t-to defend m-myself" she looked up and him in the eyes briefly before looking down due to tears threatening to spring loose again.

Being his usually dense self he failed to see the tears but he did notice the sorrow in her voice. It reminded him an awful lot like the pain he felt inside almost every night of his life. Frowning a bit before smiling again he said "Hey don't be too hard on yourself! It was four against one. That doesn't make you weak!"

Hinata could help but smile and feel full of a foreign feeling of confidence. She nodded at him and opened her mouth to speak but heard her father's voice draw closer and closer. He was attempting to call out to her and find her.

"Hinata! There you are." The head of the Hyuuga clan stated with relief until he stopped and looked upon the scene. His daughter had been crying. This was obvious by the redness of her eyes. What had caused this he wondered? He looked more closely at her face and saw she had a red hand print on her face! He looked to the right and saw the Uzumaki boy smiling like a fool. The boy he recognized quickly as the "demon child" everyone despised so much. His mind and fatherly instincts put two and two together and hand summed up that he had hit her and was happy about it. His face turned from relief to anger in a flash.

Having seen this look before Hinata knew what to expect depending on who it was aimed at. She followed his vision with her eyes and saw that he was giving Naruto this look. Her eyes widen in realization as she quickly explained the whole situation from the bullies to the boy saving her from getting a further beating. Hiashi raised an eyebrow at the story and looked to Naruto and Hinata back and forth to see if there were any discrepancies between them. He found none. In finding nothing but truth Hiashi turned to Naruto and gave him a slight bow.

"Thank you for saving my daughter Uzumaki-san." Hiashi said with a calm tone that the Hyuuga were known for.

Returning the bow Naruto said "No problem sir!" finishing the sentence with one his trademark foxy grins.

Seeing him grining like that made Hinata couldn't help a giggle as it escaped her lips. Hiashi seeing thing looked down at his daughter and let a rare and ever so slight smile cross his face as he asked "Uzumaki-san would you care to come with us to the compound for the evening? My daughter seems to enjoy your company and this would allow me to repay you for saving her." Upon hearing her father's words Hinata blushed and began twiddling with her fingers again.

Naruto just smiled and reached a hand sheepishly to the back of his head and rubbed it while giving off a sunlight smile "Sure that sounds like fun!" he said while on the inside he was jumping for joy that he may have actually made a true friend today. Little did he know the good that having her in his life would do for him. In Hinata he found more than a friend. He found a light, an angel ready to do what she must to protect and be with him.

The rest of the day was spent with Naruto and Hinata playing around and getting to know each other with Hiashi and his wife watched them with smiles. The couple was happy that this little blonde boy could bring out the best in their daughter and make her laugh and smile and be truly happy. At the end of the day Naruto said his goodbyes and asked if it was okay if he came over again. Hiashi had no problem with this and even encouraged him to do so. Smiling all the way he made his way back home. All seemed to end well for him until he saw something. Out of the corner of his eyes he noticed a few figures in the shadows when one of the figures stepped out the shadow with a look of pure hatred on his face. Naruto knew this look very well and knew if he tried to run it would only make it worse on him. Within moments one could hear the screaming of a little boy as he was viscously beaten and left in an alley way to bleed and suffer with his injuries. Just before he lost consciousness he saw a man jump down and pick him up quickly.  
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Naruto woke up in hospital bed. He knew it was a hospital due to its weird sterile like smell. He tried to sit up and found his ribs were hurting him. Nothing more than a dull pain but still enough to let him know something had happened to him. When he opened his eyes he saw a familiar sight in the Sandaime Hokage before him.

Smiling a bit Naruto stated excitedly "Hey jiji!"

The Sandaime just smiled back and said "Hey Naruto, how are you feeling?"

Naruto frowned as he remembered the events of last night. He said with a smaller smile "I feel better now I guess." He looked down as he still could not understand why exactly it was that people did not like him and tried to ruin every single day of his life.

Seeing this, the Sandaime made sure Naruto was feeling better by running down the list of his injuries and checking them with him. He had five broken ribs, three on the left and two on the right. He had a punctured lung caused from the ribs being broke. A broken wrist and a few cracks on his skull. Naruto nodded at each of them and told him each time that he felt fine. Feeling content with Naruto's answers knowing that the demon inside of him most likely took care of all the injuries already went to take Naruto out to ramen then back to his house so no one bothered to finish the job will the boy was recovering for the day. Just before they got to his house Naruto spoke up and asked a question.

"Hey jiji who was the one that brought me to the hospital?" Naruto asked genuinely curious as to who would willingly help him out knowing it was probably and ANBU member. Naruto hoped it wasn't and hoped it would be a new friend.

The Sandaime looked down at the boy curiously. He had asked the same question when he arrived at the hospital and no one was able to give him an answer. They just found him in a bed with the alarm in the room going off to alert the nurses that the person in that room needed their help. When the nurses arrived they found the window open and Naruto lying in the bed battered and bruised. Hiruzen sighed and said "Sorry Naruto but I have no idea who it was."

Naruto was let down in a way because he didn't know the identity of person who had saved him. He was still happy that someone had saved and that was enough to make him smile. "Thanks for today jiji!" and with that we went off to his apartment and locked the door.

The Sandaime smiled and turned "Boar!" he called out and the moment it left his lips the corresponding mask was right in front of him.

"Yes Hokage-sama?" he asked ready and able to receive his mission.

"Watch over him tonight and make sure he is safe for the day."

"Yes Hokage-sama." The boar masked ANBU said with a polite bow before vanishing in a puff of smoke.

The old Hokage rubbed the bridge of his nose and sighed in defeat. Even with his law passed people still kept on with their hatred and anger and directed at the poor boy that had no clue as to why people seemed to hate him so much. He was beginning to walk back to the tower so that he could get a jump on the blasted and copious amounts of paperwork when the cat ANBU appeared in front of him.

"Hokage-sama we have found the people responsible for the beating Naruto received last night." The ANBU's voice was filled with something. Was it fear he wondered? No it had to be something else. Her voice seemed…surprised. Was this feeling in her voice shock?

"And why are they not with you?" he questioned curious as to why they did not arrest them or at least bring them to him so he could order the execution of them.

"That is because they are already dead." The ANBU responded promptly.

His eyes widened a bit and he motioned for the ANBU to lead him to the area in which the bodies were at.  
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When he got there his eyes met a most gruesome sight. There were five bodies in all in the alley way. The first one was at his feet. This body died from a wound to the stomach. A blade of some sort had cut through his stomach and something had pulled his intestines out through the wound. He also had his throat slashed and his arm was extended and his hand was pointing upwards to the next body. This body no longer possessed a head as it was lying next to the body in a pool of brown looking blood. His eyes blinked for a moment then went to the next body which had no visible wounds on it. In fact the body after this one also had no apparent wounds on it. It wasn't until the Hokage focused more the subtler details that he noticed these two had been poisoned. What poisoned them he wondered? He was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard a groan. He looked up at the end of the alley way was the last member of the group. He was nailed to the wall with kunai in each of his limbs. He had several slash marks on his chest and legs. Slash marks that could only be caused by a sword of some sort. The man had several stains of blood all over his civilian outfit.

The man spoke up weakly "Help….me…please."

The Hokage snapped out of his thoughts and replied "Who did this to you?"

The man visibly shuddered at the question obviously bringing back painful memories "A man…..with a…..black soul…..golden eyes….an-" the man tried to finish but found that his time on Earth was over as death claimed him. He slumped down unable to carry his own weight anymore and fell down from the wall to reveal a message. This message was written in blood and said _"STAY AWAY FROM HIM"_ in big bold blood letters. Several ANBU upon looking at the scene had to lift up their mask and release the contents of their breakfast onto the pavement due to the foul smell and horrid scene before them.

Hiruzen blinked and ordered the ANBU to clean this up before the other civilians woke up and got their day started. As he walked away he had one thought.

_'Orochimaru…..'_  
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Orochimaru looked over the scene to which the Hokage was at and frowned. The Hokage had ordered it to get cleaned up that would mean no one would see it and the beatings of his son would continue. This enraged Orochimaru but he knew that even a sannin could not take on an entire village and walk out alive. As mad as he was he back up and went to the wall of the village and after a few brief jumps he made it there. He looked over his former village with disgust. These worthless insects could never understand him or the things he did and branded him a monster. That was okay as he did not care what they thought of him. Then they decide to turn it on his son?! It did not matter to him that the village hated him but he would not stand for the village hating his son. It was too much for him to bear. His son was the only piece of his lover he had left. The only piece of his heart he truly cherished. Then as to further mock him they placed a seal on him that erased the true form of his child. He would have his revenge on them one day. Until then he had to wait for the perfect moment to seize his child back into his arms. This would take careful planning on his part something that would have to be done in his free time from the Akatsuki. Ah the Akatsuki a group of S-ranked criminals that are working together for the preservation of the leaders dream which was a dream of peace by removing all the pain in the world permanently through the tailed beasts and their human hosts. Orochimaru turned and jumped off the wall as he remembered how he fell into the group anyway.

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_(Flashback)_

It had been a week since the incident involving his family. His heart ached for them and he spent many of nights as of recent without any type of sleep. He wanted nothing more than to march back to Konoha and take his son back but he knew that Hiruzen, his old sensei, would not let him go easy plus there was Jiraiya to worry about as well. Shaking his head from those thought he tried to determine where he could go. Any of the five great villages were out since they would all recognize him. He wouldn't dare go to any of the smaller villages because he needed to deal with civilized people and farmers were certainly not that. Although he had heard of a place a few weeks ago that was beginning to grow under new leadership. Some character by the name of Pain had defeated Hanzo and assumed leadership of Ame. Ame….what a dump of a city with its constant raining and war torn land and shanty made buildings fastened together through scraps of sheet metal. It was a hole indeed but despite this the city managed to be budding and growing and would develop into a great village if it stays on its current path for a few more years. Deciding the city was at least worth checking out despite the detestable and irritating rain. Having made up his mind he turn his jumps and began making way to there.

(A few days later inside of a hotel in Ame)

Orochimaru opened his eyes and was greeting with a gray ray of sunlight followed by the sound of rain constantly hitting the window of his room. He sighed to himself and swung out of bed to get dressed and begin his day. He needed more information on these Akatsuki people and what exactly their intentions were. Deciding there was really only one way to pick up this kind of information and as much as he hated it he needed to go. The only way to gather this information and make it seem normal was to go to a bar and listen in on the conversation. As soon as he was dressed he grabbed his straw hat left the hotel and went to the nearest bar. He got down to the lobby of the hotel and noticed a few thugs outside roughing up a fool dumb enough to cross their path. Smirking he pushed open the door and made his way in to the rainy city with a brisk walk. As he walked he recalled his battle with Hanzo and he honestly thought he would never come back here. Shaking those thoughts from his head he rounded a corner and kept walking.

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After a few minutes of traveling around past all kinds of shops and stores he finally found what he was looking for. Placing his hand on the handle of the door to the building he pushed it open and let himself in. His eyes had to strain for a moment as the lights in the bar were certainly brighter that the grey of the day going on outside the small building. As he walked in he found that it looked just like any other bar in all earnest. There was a place one could order drinks and sit at whilst all-around of the bar 'island' were tables and booths for people to sit at and have their order taken. Someone people looked up from their drinks to see who it was at the door while others had simply glanced in that direction. Choosing to take a booth in the corner furthest from the door Orochimaru sat down and waited patiently. After a few minutes a waitress approached him and asked what he would like to have. He simply asked for a cup and a bottle of sake. Once the aforementioned items had arrived he poured himself a glass and slowly sipped it. It was partially watered down and tasted somewhat foul but to the average person looking to lose their stress or at least bury for a moment it was perfect. He scanned the area to look for people that may have something interesting to mention but so far no one had caught his eye on the subject. Several hours passed and Orochimaru was getting more and more impatient with the people of this city. The subjects of discussion hadn't seemed to change at all. It was the same thing over and over again from the rain to wives to annoying brats and back again to rain. Orochimaru was beyond fed up and was just about ready to leave when blue haired women had walked through the door. She was wearing her hair down with a paper flower in her hair. She had on a black robe that went with a high collar to about her mouth. This black robe had on multiple red clouds on it. Tracing the last of her body he noticed he had almost orang-ish eyes. A rare pigmentation indeed he thought to himself. She seemed to scan the area to a similar effect to how he did when he first showed up several hours ago. She stopped her scan and walked over to where the bartender was and conversed with him for a moment. Orochimaru could tell it was about him because the bartender continuously looked over to where he was sitting for brief moments during their conversation. The blue-haired women nodded at him and approached the corner booth which Orochimaru was in. Taking off his straw hat he looked her dead in the eyes but she did not flinch.

"Are you Orochimaru of the legendary three sannin?" The women asked in him with a flat tone that hinted she was not happy about being assigned to find him and bring him in but she knew better than to question the leader.

Orochimaru looked up at her and coolly replied "When making introductions it is common courtesy to tell one's own name first." ending his sentence with a small grin curious as to why this women knew his name and why she wanted him to go with her. The latter question would have to wait until later.

She scowled at him for his evasiveness of her question and replied "I am Konan. Now are you or are you not Orochimaru of the sannin?" she stated with a slightly impatient tone.

"I am him." he stated with a slight amount of anger as he remembered the other two that were considered part of that group.

"Follow me." she commanded to him. Normally he would have told her no and just leave but he had no leads to go on and she did match the outfit he was told to look for when dealing with Akatsuki members. Settling his thoughts he got up and followed her while being cautious and well aware of his surroundings as to not run into a trap if one was set up. They walked side by side through the streets of Ame and towards the tallest building. A large tower made out of different types of metal and piping. Noticing Orochimaru was on edge Konan spoke up in a stoic manner.

"_Relax you are not being lead into a trap. I am taking you to go meet the village leader, Pain."_

His eyes widened ever so slightly. The very object of his desire had requested an audience with him. Using this time to his advantage he decided it was his turn to question her and find out all that he could before the confrontation with the leader.

"How exactly did you know who I was?" he asked in a generally curious manner though inside he was hoping to get more insight on the leader, Pain.

"Not much goes on in this village without the leader being aware of it. Also not many people come here for pleasure thanks to the weather of Ame." she stated bluntly as to not give away too much to him in case he turned Pain down on his offer to him. She hoped he wouldn't be that stupid as she really did not feel like getting in a fight today. Especially not one with an S-ranked criminal like Orochimaru.

Orochimaru frowned at this. Nothing in that sentence was anything more than just the logical and plain answer. She must know something to give him such a blank statement or she is smarter than she looks .Pursuing the information he so craved he asked "Is that so? How does he have such a knowledgeable mind about things within the village? Better yet why would he take interest in one single person in a village with many other people scattered about?" he asked her with a quick glance over in her direction to see her reaction. He was quickly disappointed as she maintained he blank face and even paced walk.

"He wasn't exactly looking for you but I will allow him to explain himself. We have arrived at our destination." she said as she opened the door to a winding path of stairs that lead up to the top of the tower. Orochimaru walked in and began walking up the stairs bracing himself for whatever may face him up there. After a few short minutes of traveling he managed to reach the top of the tower where a man in an Akatsuki robe stood. This man had orange and purple swirl layered eyes. Taking a moment to examine them he came to the realization that he must have the fabled rinnegan. 'So that's how he was able to be Hanzo.'

"There you are Orochimaru I am the leader of this village. My name is Pain and welcome to Amegakure." Pain said as he turned an opened his arms as if he was preparing to hug the city itself as he introduced it to Orochimaru.

Orochimaru noticed his pride for his village and was reminded of the pain his own village and the inhabitants it carried. How he could not wait to crush that village with all of his might and laugh as it burns and crumbles under his strength. He was snapped out of his thoughts when Pain spoke again in a low but authoritative voice that almost boomed over the empty room and left out of the balcony that looked over the village. "Before we get our conversation underway I want to know from you. Why have you come to Ame? I can't imagine an S-ranked criminal like you to come here because of the scenery. "

Orochimaru glanced at him and decided there would be nothing gained by lying to him. Plus if he felt like he was lying then he would have a whole city to fight through and he was not about to do that. He took in a breath and spoke truthfully "I am here to learn more of the organization that you run."

Pain looked him over once or twice before speaking again "What do you know of the Akatsuki already?" he asked coldly to make sure he understood the gravity of his current question and make sure the seriousness got through to him.

Orochimaru looked back at him unfazed by his questions coldness he replied with equal coldness "They are a group of S-ranked criminals."

"That is all you know?" Pain asked with a slightly curious look on his face but most of it was hidden by the collar of the robe.

"Yes." Orochimaru stated blankly.

Pain looked to Konan and nodded at her briefly then looked back to Orochimaru "The Akatsuki is indeed a group of powerful S-ranked shinobi that much is true. However, that is not all. We are a group that seeks to unify the world in peace through our own methods as was my Masters dream."

Orochimaru raised an eyebrow as the mention of a master. He wondered who exactly this "Master" of the Akatsuki leader would be. He made a mental note of this to check up on later. Right now he would need to focus on the task at hand.

"How exactly do you intend to gather up enough power to bring down the five great nations? I doubt they will just go along with whatever plan you have in mind." he asked unaware of the danger that such a question would bring him if asked in a different manner.

"They will not be able to stop us. We will use the power of the Bijuu to make our plan work. Will collect all nine of them for this purpose and extract their power from their hosts."

Orochimaru internally began to worry. His son was one of the ones that they would go after. His interest reached a new height.

"By extract what do you mean? And what happens to the host after the 'extraction process'?"

"The process of removing the bijuu from its human host will kill them."

Orochimaru's eyes widened. His son would be killed if they got to him and take him to place of extraction. He needed to come up with a method and a plan to save his son. Could he defeat Pain? He might be able but with the rinnegan Pain would put up one hell of a fight plus he had Konan on his side to back him up not to mention the city itself and who knows what else. He went through multiple battle situations in his head and came to the conclusion that fighting would be out of the question. Even if he managed to beat Pain he would have to fight Konan as well. If had managed to best her and her unknown abilities he would not have enough energy to fight off anything else if it were to come after him. That's when a thought hit him. He could join them and work from the inside. Eventually people would have to be sent to collect the nine tailed beasts throughout the land. He would just have to make sure that he was the one that went after Naruto. Before he could continue his internal plotting Pain spoke again.

"Can we count you in?" He asked after noticing the seemingly rough internal struggle Orochimaru was going through. His face flashed through a series of emotions from anger to sadness to surprise then finally relaxed again. Orochimaru looked at Pain and spoke.

"Very well I will join you and your group in your goal."

(Flashback End)  
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Orochimaru smirked as he recalled his plan and how it seemed to be working to perfection. He was in the Akatsuki. His robes and ring were testament to that fact. The Akatsuki had him do several small end missions (Small for someone with his level of skill) for money to put into Ame so that it could work its way up to a great village. A small chuckle left his lips for if everything went well he would be able to protect his son and tell him the truth after all these years. He only hoped he wouldn't resent him for not being there for him all these years. Shaking his head of these thoughts he sped off into a small clearing of the forest surrounding Konoha. Once he landed there a voice rang out from the shadows the trees were casting.

"Hello Orochimaru-sama." the shadow's voice spoke out.

"Hello, Kabuto." said ninja stepped out of the shadows to reveal himself to his master. Kabuto had sliver-grey hair and glasses with black rimmed glasses. He had on a grey undershirt with a purple sleeveless high collar shirt over it with purple gloves that go to about his elbow. He had on bandages on his waist with purple pants and blue shinobi sandals. He had in his hand a scroll which contained valuable information on the leaf village regarding all there was to know about Naruto thus far.

"Here you are Orochimaru-sama though I don't understand why you would want information on the village prankster. He doesn't seem like much." Kabuto said as he handed Orochimaru the scroll which was in his hand. Kabuto looked at his master and noticed his face went from one of a smirk to a frown in an instant.

"Kabuto I have a new mission for you. I want you to look after Naruto for me. We will meet here every three months for you to give me a detailed report on what he does most days and who his friends are and what his favorite things to do are. I want to know everything there is to know about him. Also if you can let me know of any missions he has taken and any that he will be taking. Under no circumstances are you to engage and talk to Naruto. However if the villagers get the nerve to attack him again you are to wait until Naruto in no longer in sight and dispose of the culprits. Again do not confront Naruto face to face. He is to never know you even exist at all." Orochimaru said with pure authority in his voice that left no room for questioning his orders in the slightest. Kabuto nodded and sped off back to the village leaving Orochimaru behind with a smile on his face. He may not be able to be there for his son in person but at least he could have someone watch out for him and protect him from the ignorant villagers. They would pay for their insolence and their poor judgment when dealing with his son. Orochimaru turned and sped off into the forest with a prideful smile stained on his face.  
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**A/N: Well there we go! Another chapter done and up for your viewing pleasure. I wanted this chapter to kinda get the ball rolling without showing to much of what I plan to do in the future. I hope you all enjoyed it and hope to see you next chapter! If you like this please support by Rate and Review thank you! Also enjoy the Holiday!  
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	3. Chapter 3: Surprise

**Chapter 3: Surprises**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Summary: Naruto's Heritage explained. Plans are crushed while others are set in motion.  
  
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"Speech"  
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"Angry speech/Jutsu/Summon"**  
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'Thoughts/ memories'  
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'Demonic thoughts'  
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This story is rated M for Violence, Blood/Gore, and Adult themes.  
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Naruto awoke to his mortal enemy attacking him, Sunlight. All he wanted was to rest today and let the day go on around him with any worries on his part. The Sun on the other hand would not just simply let him sleep. Sighing in defeat he swung his legs over the edge of the bed and walked to the kitchen to make him some ramen for breakfast. He got out one of his cast iron pots, filled it with water, and set it on the stove and turned the nob to activate the gas from the propane tank below since he didn't get gas to his apartment directly. He remembered how he learned to jury rig the propane tank through a maintenance book he found in a dumpster one time. The water came to a boil and he poured the noodle goodness in and made his breakfast. After he was done eating he thought he would go and meet a certain Hyuuga girl while she was getting done with her morning spar. Such was their usual routine ever since Naruto stopped those kids from hitting Hinata and went back to play with her for the day. After such the two became practically inseparable from each other doing practically everything they could when they got the chance to do so. There were of course some days Naruto couldn't see her because she had clan business or impromptu training or something akin to that nature. He was developing quite the bond with the little girl and began feeling something strong in his stomach when he thought of her. Such is what happens when one spends over four months consecutively with someone. Now with only two months until they had to go to the ninja academy the two now six year olds could hardly wait!

"We get to learn how to be ninja!"

"We'll be the best ones ever!"

"We'll graduate at the top of the class!"

These were just some of the thoughts that rang around the two children's heads with the thought of the academy. Both of them were beyond excited to say the least but both for different reasons. Naruto was excited because he got to go and gain the next step to becoming Hokage and Hinata because she got to spend more time with Naruto albeit it being in a class room.

With the last of the ramen done Naruto threw on he is orange jumpsuit he just recently bought and headed out the door and into the streets of Konohagakure no Sato.

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Hinata had just woken up from her slumber to her favorite sight. Rays of sunlight shooting through the window to greet her pale skin and tell her it was time to rise from her slumber and dreams. This night's dream was no different from the rest as of recent. She would fall asleep and dream of Naruto and her doing all sorts of things together from eating together to taking missions together and possibly raising a family together. Hinata blushed as she remembered how blissful that dream felt to her. It felt so real and so…right. Sighing as she remembered the dream she swung her legs out of bed and put on a robe the maids had laid out for her when she awoke. She threw the robe on and brushed her teeth. After that she went down stairs to eat breakfast and begin her morning spar with her father. Over the course of four months Hinata had gotten much better due in large part to her found confidence from Naruto. She vowed that something like the bully situation would never happen again and she wouldn't need someone to help her by saving her. From now on Hyuuga Hinata would save herself from harm. Getting down to the bottom of the stairs Hinata slid the door back and proceeded to eat the breakfast that the maids had set out for her. Finishing her breakfast she stood on her tip toes and put the dish in the sink and went to go spar with father. Hoping that Naruto would show up in time to see her and cheer her on like he normally did.  
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The aforementioned blonde sneezed as he was running to the Hyuuga compound and almost lost his balance causing him to stumble mid-stride. _'Damn it'_ he though _'I'm already running late! At this rate I won't make it in time to see Hinata spar!'_ with his last thought he put as energy into his small and pushed hard as he could towards his goal. Hoping to whatever Kami was out there that he wouldn't be too late.

He pushed and rounded the last corner with considerable speed for a six year old despite the sheen of sweat that was collecting on his face and the fire in his lungs from lack of oxygen. The Hyuuga guards at the gate seemed slightly amused at the little blonde blur speeding his way to them. The guards were not surprised as they knew exactly who it was and had actually grown rather fond of the little blonde. Once Naruto had reached he was nearly ripping at the seams with nervous energy.

"PLEASE please please please tell me I am not too late to see Hinata and Hiashi-sama spar!?" the little blonde boy asked the two stoic Hyuuga who looked down at him an then looked at each other.

"I believe if you hurry you will catch the tail end of the spar." The left guard said. Naruto bowed his head in appreciation at the guard and sped into the compound. The right guard watched as he went into the compound when a question popped into his head.

"Hey he has blonde hair right? The only people that have blonde hair is the Yamanaka clan right?" The left guard nodded and wondered where exactly his train of thought was leading him.

"That's just the thing though. Naruto is not from that clan. Who else in Konoha had blonde hair? I feel like I am missing someone very important who had blonde hair. Hmm it will come to me eventually." With that the right guard resumed his normal stance and continued his thoughts.

_'The Yondaime had yellow hair right? There is no way Naruto is the Son of the Yondaime….is he?' _He mentally shrugged and went back to duty.  
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Naruto dashed inside the compound while the two guards unknowingly to the boy had a conversation about him and his linage. Naruto stopped for a moment to catch his breath and wipe the sweat from his face before sliding the door back. Much to his dismay Hiashi and Hinata were both sitting down at the table discussing the events of their spar and where Hinata needed to improve for next time. Naruto stood in the doorway and did a slight bow "Hiashi-sama I hope I am not interrupting you. I am sorry for not being able to make it as per usual." Now Hiashi himself was rather fond of the boy as he had gotten to know him over the course of the four months and he had never heard him use such manners before to anyone ever. Hiashi's eyes widened at his sudden display of gentlemen like behavior. Hiashi nodded at him and motioned for him to accompany them and have a seat much to the joy of Hinata even though she was a little upset that he couldn't make it for the spar.

"Ah Naruto thank you for joining us. Naruto-san may I ask you a question?" Hiashi asked which Naruto nodded vigorously at the older head Hyuuga.

"Where did you learn manners like that?" Hiashi asked generally curious as to where he acquired such information regarding the sophisticated society of manners and how to properly implicate them when in a conversation.

Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly and replied "I read it in a book I found once. I read over it a few time and tried my hardest to remember the words. Never thought it would actually help me!" the blonde stated proudly. He was actually happy he managed to get recognition based off something good he did instead of something wrong this time around. What he told Hiashi was the truth for the most part. The fact is that he did not read it several times over. In fact he only went through the book about once and surprisingly he managed to remember everything from it in one go. He wondered exactly what had happened. _'Maybe it's some hidden Kekkei Genkai that allows me to learn at a faster pace! Cool!' _little did he know that was indeed a trait handed down to him from his parents considering both of them were very impressive shinobi in their own right and manner.

Hiashi raised an eyebrow and nodded seemingly content with his answer. Hiashi decided to test Naruto on his skills before he went into the academy as more of an assessment than a full out spar.

"Naruto would like to spar with me so that you can see your skills before you enter the academy with my daughter?" said daughter blushed at the mention of them going to the academy. In truth Hiashi wanted to see if his parentage rang true when came to their child.

Naruto, not being one to pass up a chance at a good challenge accepted without hesitation "Sure!" he belted out and made his way to the training ground with a grinning Hiashi and a blushing Hinata in tow.

Once they got to the mentioned training dojo both Hiashi and Naruto took their distance from each other and gave a slight bow before Hiashi slipped into his gentle fist style and Naruto just kinda stood there and looked determined. Well as determined as a six year could possible look. Before the fight began Hinata began to worry for the blonde. She knew how rough sparing with him could be especially with how demanding her father could be. Alas she had faith in her friend and crush to do the best he could and make her father pleased.

"Begin." Hiashi said as he analyzed Naruto. The boy had no stance but that was to be expected without the academy teaching him anything. When Naruto charged at Hiashi it was in a straight line with no attempts to complicate the eye and attempt to make him misjudge where the blow would be coming from. Naruto cocked his right arm back and launched it at Hiashi's chest. The more experienced and patient Hyuuga slapped his hand aside and went to deliver an open palm to his chest but much to his surprise Naruto seemed to bend around the hit almost inhumanely as if the bones in his spine just bent him out of harm's way. Naruto smirked and attempted to deliver a kick to his head while it was slightly lowered in surprise. Noticing this Hiashi jerked his head back to dodge his kick whilst spinning and delivered a strong palm to Naruto's stomach and sent him sailing backwards. Naruto bounced once and landed on his face much to the dismay of the Hyuuga girl in attendance.

"Do you want to stop?" Hiashi asked as he wanted to be careful not to hurt the poor boy too much. He was starting to care for him after all.

Naruto weakly got up and looked Hiashi in the eyes with a hint of venom in his eyes that Hiashi didn't think the boy had in him at all. Now that he was paying attention Hiashi looked carefully at his eyes and noticed something that sent a chill to his very core. On the left side of his face where Naruto landed after Hiashi hit him was an odd manifestation. Naruto's left eye had become silted and slightly green with a blue under marking and extremely pale skin that very much resembled a certain snake the entire village knew and despised. (A/N: His eye is green due to Minati's eyes from the transformation seal placed on him at birth and Orochimaru's yellow eyes.) Hiashi felt a very cold chill crawl up his spine as he remembered the day Hiruzen had called them in for an emergency meeting with the Shinobi council only. No doubt Hiruzen caught hell for that stunt for not including them but seeing as how they gave him and Naruto enough trouble what was a little more added onto the list?

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_(Flashback)_

It had been merely a month after the village caught wind of the gruesome alleyway murders involving a couple of civilians that tried to punish the Kyuubi container and all of the Shinobi council was gathered though all of them wondered what exactly the meeting was about. The Sandaime came into the chamber and wave a hand signaling that he was ready to begin the meeting.

"First off I want to thank you all for meeting me on such short notice as I am sure you are busy." All of the clan heads nodded and motioned for the Hokage to continue.

"This meeting is about Uzumaki Naruto and his parentage." Hiruzen stated earning him many shocked looks from the shinobi council. Finally after a few moments of dead silence Hiashi spoke up.

"What exactly do you mean and how does it pertain to the rest of us?" Hiashi asked in a flat tone and the Hokage looked at the rest of them and saw that they all nodded in approval with Hiashi's questions.

Hiruzen spoke with a slightly regretful tone that was noticed by all of the council. "Do you all remember the incident that happened a month ago involving a few villagers and a cryptic message?" they all nodded in unison.

"Now do you know who Naruto's most known parent is?" earning confused looks from everyone on the council. "Think about it. Who does he look like? Blonde hair with blue eyes and tanned skin?" at the end of his sentence all of the council's eyes widened in disbelief. They had heard that the Yondaime had given birth to a child but they always assumed that they both died carrying the Namikaze clan name to grave with them.

"That's correct. Naruto is the son of the Yondaime." The council ignited in an uproar of commotion and questions ranging from "Why weren't we told sooner?" and "Bring him here so we can properly discuss this!" but eventually the entire council quieted down once they looked upon the Hokage's face and realized that it was one of mixed anger and regret. Hiashi remembered thinking what exactly Hiruzen was so regretful of that it showed on his face quite clearly. It was then Hiashi came up with the next logical question in reference to the boy.

"If the Yondaime was the mother than who was the father?" he asked in a tone that showed his curiosity as he wondered who fathered the child because he knew that Minati was not married publically so who could it possibly be?

Hiruzen visibly flinched at the question an slumped his shoulders in defeat and agony as he spoke with a voice with so much pain and emotion in it that everyone in the council suddenly felt guilty of all the wrong doings they did in their life "Orochimaru." The council was beyond shocked and mortified. Their beloved Yondaime and been involved in a romantic relationship with the snake of Konoha? It was just too much to think about much less bare. After a few long antagonizing minute of pure silence the council blew up into another fit of uncontrolled questions and statements. Most of the noise was unintelligible and the ones that could be read were drowned out by the noises coming from the other members of the group. After ten or so minutes the group finally settled down enough to become calm again. This is when the Aburame clan head spoke up.

"Is that true? It hardly makes logical sense that the Yondaime would traverse in a sexual relationship with the former leaf ninja. Also if it was true then why does Naruto look solely like his Mother and nothing of his Father?" He spoke calmly and flatly as all the Aburame members were famous for. The numerous clan heads nodded.

"I….I was there after the Kyuubi was sealed inside of Naruto. I placed another seal on him that made his genes take solely after his Mother so no one would find out about his actual heritage." The Hokage spoke with pain from the memories that night brought to him.

Hiashi was about to speak when a bandaged man stepped out of the shadows. This man had his arm in a sling and had most of his body, including his left eye, wrapped up in bandages. He had on a plain grey robe over most of his body. This man was Shimura Danzo the commander of ROOT and former teammate to the Hokage. He spoke with a war hardened voice that one gets after seeing way to much combat in their life time.

"If what you say is true then the boy is a huge risk. Not only is he the spawn of that traitorous snake Orochimaru but he is also the container for the Kyuubi making him also very volatile in terms of emotions. Therefore, I request to take the boy and give him emotional control training similar to that of my ROOT agents." He proudly and matter-of-factly proclaimed feeling proud of himself due to the lack of loopholes in his plan. Everything he said was true and he was the only one who could teach the boy that level of emotional control. Hiruzen knew it would be a very bad idea to hand Naruto over to Danzo to turn him into a super weapon to crush all the enemy villages. Lucky for him Minati had thought about this in her will. Hiruzen smiled brightly against his longtime friend/rival.

"Well that would be the logical thing to do." Hiruzen said letting Danzo believe he had finally won one over on his friend/rival. "But I can't let that happen. It was specifically requested that Naruto remain free of any and all training you may give him. As stated here in the will of the Yondaime herself." the Sandaime held up a scroll with the official Hokage seal on it.

Danzo scowled at him "Furthermore you wouldn't really want to go against the last testament of the Yondaime and one that was approved by both the Civilian and Shinobi council would you?"

Danzo frowned at him but said nothing more as he nodded and made his way out of the chamber. A few brief moments of silence followed before the council asked to read the will of the Yondaime for themselves. After a good thirty minutes had passed it finally got the end of the row where Hiashi was at. Unrolling the scroll Hiashi began to read the message laid out for him.

"Dear Honored Council Members,

If you are reading this message then it means I have died during the attack of the Kyuubi and sealed the demon inside of a child. Hiruzen has probably explained by now that the child I sealed the demon into was my own child Naruto and I assure you it is true. Naruto is my son. I don't know if he explained who the father is because of his shame regarding the issue. Naruto's Father is Orochimaru. As strange as it sounds I willingly bared his child within me. No I was not influenced in anyway. By now you are wondering why he looks like he only takes after me. This is because I prepared a seal in case I wasn't there to convince the council of Orochimaru's changed heart. The seal alters Naruto's genes to look solely like me as to draw less attention from the rest of the crowds of villagers. If Naruto resembled Orochimaru in any way I am not sure what would happen to my poor son. It is my last wish that Naruto not be told of his Heritage until he graduates from the academy and is getting along well with his new team. Also, I do not want Naruto to have any relation to Danzo or anything he is directly involved in. Please treat Naruto well if you can and tell him I love him.

From  
The Yondaime"

Hiashi felt his breath hitch for a bit as all of his questions were laid to rest after reading the genuine article with Minati's stamp on the bottom of the scroll. Hiashi still had one more question to ask.

"What do we do with the boy now?"

"Just go about your normal business like nothing happened. This meeting was to inform you all of the information that was at first canceled from everyone. Hiashi I believe Naruto spends a great deal of time with you and your Daughter Hinata right? Perhaps you can fulfill the last part of the Yondaime's request in keeping him happy?"

Hiashi nodded at the old Hokage and sighed as he rolled the scroll back up carefully and walked over to Hiruzen and gave it to him before slowly walking out of the chamber so he could go to his gardens and meditate over this new information and process it carefully.

(Flashback end)

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Naruto looked at Hiashi who seemed to be completely zoned out while Naruto caught his breathe. Naruto wondered why exactly this was considering for the past couple of months Hiashi had been acting rather strange towards him. In fact there had been a few times had been caught by Naruto down right staring at him. Naruto of coursed called him out on it but being a prideful Hyuuga he refused to acknowledge that he lowered himself to such a level.

Taking advantage of his momentary distraction Naruto charged at Hiashi again with his green eye from his altered features almost glowing. Lucky for Naruto his affected features were on the Left side of his face while his friend Hinata was on the Right side of the training dojo. Hiashi was still in shock as he wasn't expecting any of his true features to show through especially not during a training session. _'Why do the features chose now to show up? Could the seal be weakening? That seems unlikely considering the Yondaime had made it. Although the boy has been put through a considerable amount of stress for his age that could be the cause of it. That has to be the reason behind it.'_

Hiashi snapped out of his thoughts when he heard the patter of little feet rush towards him again. Naruto threw punch after punch and kick after kick with little to no success in hitting the Hyuuga clan head. What surprised him was his energy that he managed to keep up with along with his flexibility and range of motion. He attributed this to his parents and after a few good hits from Hiashi he called it quits.

Regaining the ever famous Hyuuga composure, Hiashi stood out of his stance and readjusted his robes "That's enough for now Naruto. You did very well and are more than ready to enter the academy." Upon hearing this Naruto beamed with pride and Hinata did a little bit of clapping on the side to show she was happy as well. The rest of their day went as well as could be with the two children playing and eating together as they normally do with a concerned Hiashi off on the side watching the two. More specifically he was watching Naruto and noticed when the spar was over and he caught his breath his features had returned to normal much to the delight of the Clan head.

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(Two Months Later)

Orochimaru was fuming. He could not believe the turn of luck he was having at the moment. All of his plans were ruined. All because a blasted Uchiha brat would not shut up about his son. Orochimaru frowned as the memories came rushing back to him.

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_(Flashback)_

Orochimaru and Sasori had just completed yet another trivial mission for shinobi of their skill and had been requested back at their hideout base and after a few days traveling from the land of Iron they had made it back.

Pain and Konan were both there in holograph form. Along with them were both Hidan and Kakazu. Only Orochimaru, Sasori and Kisame and Itachi were there in the physical sense of the being. This being the first time Orochimaru had ever seen Itachi he was a tad suspicious of the newcomer. Orochimaru glared at the Uchiha for a while and much to his annoyance didn't have any effect on him at all. His gazed drifted back to the leader, Pain who had just finished up the meeting talking about some new missions for some scraps of money to help fund Amegakure and make it great. Orochimaru brushed this off as he had little interest in making anything other than himself or his interests great. After the meeting the Shark sword wielder spoke up with a toothy grin showing off his numerous sharp teeth.

"Hey hey Orochimaru! Did you meet the new guy? Killed his whole clan in one night all by himself too!" Kisame spoke with a lighter voice. Now one thing to note about Kisame and Orochimaru is they absolutely hated one another down to the smallest fiber of their beings. Ever since Orochimaru joined he and Kisame have butted heads about their conflicting personalities. Orochimaru ridiculed him because he was too much like a shark in always charging forward and never having a plan and just relying on strength alone. Kisame ridiculed him because he was too much like a snake in that he waited for too long before striking and relied more on cunning than strength. The two most defiantly hated the other and their respective styles.

"And he is from the leaf village! Just. Like. You." Kisame said with a huge amount of killing intent simply slipping off his body. Orochimaru scoffed at the pathetically lower killer intent after all fight and surviving an attack from the world's strongest Bijuu did have its perks. The two just stood there and glared at each other, neither of them saying one word. Sasori on the other hand being the almighty impatient one could hardly stand the silence and lack of busyness.

"Cut it out you two. We have a mission to work on. Orochimaru let's go. Now." Sasori eyed Orochimaru in a hope to get his point across. Orochimaru just frowned and waved him on.

"Go on ahead and I'll catch up to you in no time. I am going to have a chat with my fellow leaf-nin."

Both Kisame and Sasori grunted in unison and promptly left the small area in which the two were in. Orochimaru was looking for Itachi and failed to find him until he saw him leaving for the bridge which connected to the small building. Orochimaru grinned and swiftly followed him and stealthily snuck up behind the Uchiha. He was getting ready to answer a question when Itachi spoke.

"Why did you want to talk with me?" he asked in a tone void of all emotion and as cold as the water in the river swirling down below them. Orochimaru simply smirked and replied

"How is my former village doing?" he asked coolly trying to maintain an intimidating presence with the other S-Ranked missing Nin though he could not tell if it was working or not due to the Uchiha's calm exterior he had.

"Don't you mean how is your son doing?" Orochimaru was visibly shocked and stunned upon hearing what Itachi had said. "Yes, I know Naruto is your son. I scanned him with my Sharingan and noticed his Chakra. When I looked at you for the first time I knew I had seen the Chakra somewhere. All it took was a little bit of thought before I connected the two of you. At first I found it absurd. Then I realized he looked an awful lot like the Yondaime. I put two and two together and found his heritage."

Orochimaru could not be in shock any more than he was right now. Here comes this…boy and tells him that his deepest and darkest secret is nothing more to him than a simple open book. He growled…well more like hissed lowly before Itachi spoke up again.

"The only thing I don't understand is why you are with this group. Surely you could care less about the goals of the Akatsuki so what is it? Money? Fame? Glory over Konoha? The Tailed Beasts?" Orochimaru flinched at the last one and immediately cursed himself for doing so. Itachi just smirked as he knew he had hit the nail on the head.

"Now why would the Tailed Beasts be of any concern to you?" Itachi thought loudly while running through a list of possible reasons as to why he may be interested in the aforementioned beasts of legend. Now that Itachi thought about it he remembered when he looked at Naruto for the first time and realized he had seen a pit of red chakra in his stomach behind a seal. It hit him. Naruto was the Yondaime's son. The Kyuubi was sealed into a baby that night. The Yondaime was far too noble to ask anyone to place the burden of a demon on their child willingly. He remembered hearing at the ANBU station that the Yondaime had given birth just before she died. Was Naruto that child? Was he the one that had the Kyuubi sealed inside of him? It had to be him! He was the perfect choice for it! He was just born so his chakra pathways were still fresh and brand new and he was the baby of the Yondaime. Who better to pick for the noble Hokage then her own son? Itachi's eyes visibly widened as he turned to Orochimaru with a smile on his lips. Orochimaru frowned at this as he knew nothing good would come from a smile like that.

"Ah now I understand. You want to be the one to go after the nine tails because your son is his container am I right?" Orochimaru's eyes narrowed as he focused on the young Uchiha before he slid his sword out of his sleeve on the right side and proceeded to swing it at him. Itachi seeing this in slow motion easily jumped over and behind Orochimaru and ran through a flash of hand seals before taking in a deep chakra laced breath and breathed out a large fire ball that hurtled towards Orochimaru with impressive speed for its size. Orochimaru jumped back a good distance and running through hand seals of his own at incredible speed _**Doton: Doryuheki (Earth Release: Earth Style Wall)**__ and as he spit out the mud a large wall suddenly shot up to protect its caster from the flames. The giant fireball smashed into the offending wall and quickly dissipated as it did not have enough strength to blow through the wall of Earth. This was merely a distraction for Itachi as he quickly appeared behind Orochimaru and delivered a swift kick to his spine causing him to fall down. Orochimaru turned and was running through some hand seals when he made the mistake of looking Itachi in the eyes. The effects of such a mistake were instant as Orochimaru's world became dark and cold and soon he found himself behind steel bars in a prison cell that no matter how hard he tried just would not budge in the slightest. Soon he saw two figures come into shape. One was tall while the other was shorter. The shorter one made a dash towards the cell and Orochimaru quickly gasped as he saw his son come running to him while the taller one just stood there and looked at the scene with great interest in his eyes._

"Father!" 'Naruto' ran over to Orochimaru and hugged him through the bars and promptly sobbed as he cried into his father's arms. Orochimaru felt a knot in his heart loosen upon seeing his son. He knew this was a genjutsu but he couldn't help himself. His son felt so real and his sobs sounded so painful and remorseful. The pain his must have gone through made Orochimaru's breath get stuck in his throat. "Why were you never there Father? Especially when I needed you most?" 'Naruto' asked with such a sharp pain in his voice that Orochimaru couldn't help but feel extremely guilty at his sons words.

"I'm sorry Naruto but I had to do things to pro-" he was promptly cut off when 'Naruto' started sobbing louder and louder and increased the strength in the hug he was sharing with his Father.

"Things to do?! Was I not important enough for you to put me on that list!?" 'Naruto' screeched and Orochimaru felt a forty ton weight land straight on his heart. His worst nightmare was playing out before him and just wouldn't end for him.

"Naruto I-" he was cut off as blood splattered all over his face. Orochimaru looked and was mortified to see a sword sticking out of 'Naruto's belly. 'Naruto' mouthed "Father! Help…..me" before his eyes closed and his body was crudely tossed to the side leaving a stoic Itachi behind with no emotions playing on his face. Orochimaru on the other hand was livid and furious with unbridled rage and contempt for the Uchiha in front of him.

"Welcome to my genjutsu Orochimaru. Here I am Kami and control absolutely everything. Time also moves slower here and you are stuck here for three days and right now we have 72 hours 59 minutes and 59 seconds to go." Itachi proceeded to torture Orochimaru through various methods revolving mostly around his family that he lost and his son and lover.

Merely three seconds has passed in the real world since Orochimaru looked into Itachi's eyes. Soon Orochimaru's face contorted in a face of pure anguish. Orochimaru sluggishly stood up and quickly made his way away from the offending Uchiha. Said Uchiha dashed at him and swiftly cut his forearm off before the arms previous owner jumped off the bridge and landed in the river below. The Uchiha picked up the arm and took the ring that was attached to it before dropping said arm off the bridge and down to the watery grave of his owner. Itachi turned and jumped away to catch up with his teammate that was waiting for him just a little bit away from where the altercation took place.

Orochimaru struggled against the current of the river. Normally this would not be a problem but he was losing blood from his arm fast and he just suffered a serious psychological blow. He paddled with his one remaining arm and made his way to shore after what seemed like an eternity of swimming. He quickly tore off a his robe while performing his shedding snake style jutsu to regain his lost limb he quickly moved into the forest lest Itachi find him in his weakened state and finish the job.  
  
_(Flashback End)_  
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Orochimaru cursed himself for his lack of control and thought processing at that moment but what was done is now done. He had other things to worry about such as what he was going to do now that he needed a power base to be able to stand up to Konoha and Ame. He jumped off a tree and landed in front of a sign. Looking at the sign he frowned before he thought of an idea. He chuckled darkly before he briskly walked past the sign taking in the scenery with a devious grin.

The sign read "Welcome to the land of Rice Paddies."

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**A/N: Hope everyone had a good Holiday! Here is my present to you all. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do. Hope to see you next chapter. Until then R&R and Ja ne!**


	4. Chapter 4: The Start

Chapter 4: The Start

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Summary: A base is built and a learning process begins.

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"Speech"  
**  
"Angry speech/Jutsu/Summon"**  
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'Thoughts/ memories'  
__**  
'Demonic thoughts'  
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This story is rated M for Violence, Blood/Gore, and Adult themes.  
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Orochimaru walked down the beaten road for what seemed like days. On either side of the road was nothing more than fields' plain empty and useless fields. Some of the fields had been modified to be able to make rice as per the name of the country he was in. Nonetheless Orochimaru continued and only stopped periodically when sleep would force him into the dark nightmare filled abyss. Truth be told, ever since his encounter with Itachi he had been having the most vivid nightmares he could ever dream up. It was beyond horrible for the snake sannin. Every night he had a different dream about how Naruto or Minati would suffer and how he would be helpless to stop them from the pain. He would then wake up in cold sweat and shivering. He would wipe off the sweat and get up to keep moving further into the back water country. One such dream happened last night. In the dream Orochimaru was fighting Itachi again. Orochimaru seemed to have the upper hand on him and right as he was about to land the finishing blow Itachi's eyes glowed and Naruto came running out covered in a red chakra shroud. Orochimaru looked at his son with a curious eye then began trembling as he felt a very familiar wave of killing intent. Before his eyes his son turned into the Kyuubi no Kitsune and growled lowly at him. Orochimaru raised his sword in defense before he was gobbled up by the enormous fox. Shaking his head from that horrid memory Orochimaru pressed on for a few more hours until he came upon a town. This town was nothing too special. A few buildings of moderate quality followed by a few small family owned restaurants lining up on the main street. Orochimaru's eyes followed the main street through the center of town and up a little bit further till it hit a castle. This looked like your average castle alright but something about it didn't sit right. People were lined up outside the gates with items in their hands ranging from a sliver candle holder to a vase to homemade pottery to gold and silver. This struck Orochimaru's fancy. He needed to figure out what exactly was going on with this town and this land which had been so poorly handled. He remembered hearing about this land when he was just a little boy and how it was growing relatively fast.

He stepped through the old and battered gate and found a few average people with unmemorable faces pass by him as he walked through the simple town. He would have kept on strolling had he not bumped into a man with his head hung low.

"Oof!" the man said as he stumbled to the ground. Not wanting to cause a huge scene he offered his hand and helped the man up.

"Sorry." was all Orochimaru said. Little did he know that the small act of kindness he just performed caused a bigger scene than he would have ever guessed. As if sensing the kind act in the air, three thugs came out of nowhere and approached him about it.

"Hey you! Why'd you help him up?" the biggest of the three thugs asked trying to sound intimidating to the snake sannin but had absolutely no effect on him. In fact it caused quite the adverse effect on him. Seeing how his last few weeks were nothing but nightmares and hellish dreams put Orochimaru in a very foul mood indeed. Add on top of that, this thug was trying to push him around. To say he was livid would be a heavy understatement.

With his snake like eyes almost glowing Orochimaru asked "What does it matter to you?" with a scowl and narrowed eyes, the other two, smaller thugs looked up to the bigger one for a confidence boost and found none. None of the three had ever seen a person with eyes like a snake. Let alone ones that could glow! Add to that fact that this man seemed to have faced things far worse than them surely did not help their current situation. The biggest thug swallowed hard as he looked around and noticed the small gathering of a crowd surrounding them with gleaming hope in their eyes. He turned back to Orochimaru and began to shiver.

"By o-order of L-l-lord Toshima we a-are to s-stop all attempts at k-kindness." the thug said with his face trembling with pure fear. Orochimaru smirked and continued his questioning as he released a small amount of killing intent focused solely on the three thugs. The two smaller ones dropped to the ground almost instantly and began to release the contents of their lunch on the ground next to the big one. The big thug on the other hand had seen a big more combat and survived a few more deadly situations so was not as affected but he was still shaking and found it very hard to breath under this kind of pressure.

"Who is this Toshima?" as this question was asked the entire crowd gasped at the stranger's display of ignorance. Certainly everyone had heard of the almighty Toshima right? The biggest thug puffed up his chest and proudly stated "He is the ruler of all that you see in the Land of Rice! He owns everything from the land that you walk on to the air that you breathe in!" Orochimaru looked around with a pondering expression on his face at the man's words about the land he was currently visiting. Unleashing a deadly amount of killer intent at the trio he told them to run along before he decided to get really angry with them. Shaking his head as they ran away leaving only dust trails behind, he began to walk away from the scene when the man he bumped into came rushing out of the dispersing crowd and tapped him on the shoulder causing him to turn around and face the man who had on a small hopeful smile.

"Sorry to bother you sir but I was wondering if you had a minute to hear out a request I have?" the man said as he looked up to Orochimaru hoping he would say yes. Orochimaru, seeing this as a chance to gain some insight into this village and its egoistical leader slightly nodded as they went to a restaurant, ordered something to drink and began their conversation upon taking their seats.

"What is it you wanted to talk about?" Orochimaru asked the stranger who asked for his audience.

"I saw the way you stood up to those men. No one in this town has ever had that kind of confidence and power to scare down one of Toshima's thugs. I wanted to thank you for that. My name is Ryu son of the former advisor to the old ruler of this land." the now identified Ryu stated with a hint of happiness in his voice towards the pale man.

"Tell me. What exactly happened to this land that caused it to go downhill so badly and leave it in a state of decay like this?" Orochimaru asked. Ryu looked down after hearing this and visibly shuddered at the thoughts and memories. He took in a deep breath before beginning his tale.

"About ten years ago my father was with the King when a person approached him. You see in the past few years a certain number of fields were becoming increasingly unable to make rice with so in turn we lost a lot of money and business." Ryu took a sip of his drink. " So when a Man who came to him an promised to help them out they readily agreed. For a while the man really came through on his deal. Rice fields were coming back to life and the flow of income was increasing to its original height. About two years after the man showed up he appeared before the King saying he had another way of increasing money and promised him a 40% share of the money if he allowed him to do business in his country. My father advised against this but the King had become too trusting of the Man and agreed to his deal. True to his word the money was sent to the King and it was indeed a lot of money. Around the same time that the man had begun operations in the land was when kids started to disappear. At first it was kids only from the streets. Then kids from all over began to disappear as well. People were starting to become worried and started daily complaints from the King demanding that he hire Shinobi to help them locate the missing kids. The King who had plenty of money hired Konoha shinobi to come and take a look at the situation. The King told them everything the town folk have told him and they left to go do their job. The Shinobi never returned and the children kept on disappearing. The King became very worried. Until one day the man had returned with a few thugs with him. The Man showed disapproval as the King had tried to get him killed. The King assured him it was just to find out where the kids were going. The Man told him that most of them were being put to work in a factory for no money at all while the girls were put into sowing of fabrics to sell. The more attractive and older females were sold into the sex slave rings and used for profits that way. The King was beyond mortified at what he had heard from the Man and ordered him that he stop this business at once. The Man ordered his guards to capture the King and wound my father, his Advisor." Ryu stopped again and shuddered. "This is when the Man revealed himself to be Toshima and he declared himself the ruler over the lands. Later that day, under the false pretense that the King wanted to speak to them, had gathered in the center of town. What they saw there shocked them into the fear and paralyzed like state you see them in now. Standing on a platform was Toshima and behind him hung the King and his son from a branch. Toshima then openly declared that he was the King of the Land and demanded regular tributes in the form of money or items or people for his slave camp. Slowly but surely he started to bleed this land dry by taking all of the wealth earned and hording it in the castle you saw on the way in no doubt. Its guarded by a small army of thugs. Toshima has his thugs spread all over the Land of Rice to collect his money from them and keep them under his thumb and that's where we are now in the story." Ryu finally stopped and allowed Orochimaru to absorb all of the information he just laid out in front of him. After a few minutes of pondering it seemed like he had made up his mind.

"And you would like me to stop him would you?" Orochimaru asked Ryu who shook his head up and down with fervor in a hope to persuade him all the more to join his cause. "Very well but if I do this know that I fully intend to begin ruling over the Land of Rice seeing as how both royal bloodlines are now both completely dead."

Ryu nodded at him and smiled "I'm sure that if you decided to take up the job after Toshima was dead that the people of this land would have little to no problem in allowing to rule."

Orochimaru got up instantly and began to walk out leaving enough money on the table for both of them. He slowly walked out of the establishment and began walking up to the castle. It took him a few minutes to walk up there at a civilian pace as to not alert the thugs of him or his intentions with their master. After a few minutes of walking and internal planning of any and all situations that might occur he made it to the front gate where two big burly looking guards stood doing their best to look imposing on the foreign figure. Orochimaru simply walked up to the two and nodded and walked past them. Little did they notice the two snakes that fell out of his sleeves and slithered over to the two guards and promptly and swiftly bit them on their legs launching a deadly tissue destroying toxin into their blood stream causing them to slowly loss consciousness and pass out never to awake again. The hall was lined with red carpet made of a very fine fabric that went all the way to the throne room which was behind a set of doors. The ceiling was being supported by massive granite pillars with gold bands on the tops and bottoms of all of them. All along the isle were doors on either side that had been furnished with very fine craftsman ship and gold door knobs. Orochimaru could see where he was putting all of this money. Walking up to the throne room he noticed four guards standing in front of the door and were staring right at him as they knew today was not a collecting day for the people. Either this person had business with the boss or he was planning to cause trouble. Little did they know how right they were.

As Orochimaru approached he got the feeling these guys were not about to let him through without problems. Sighing internally he started walking up the stairs to the doors of the throne room when one of the guards stepped forward.

"What business do you have here?" he asked as he sneered down at the man. Orochimaru felt this and looked up at the man with the same glowing eyes that he used on the thugs in the city. The guard was startled but managed to remain firm as Orochimaru spoke with a voice that promised pain if it was spoken against "I need to see Toshima." Upon hearing this, the other guards who were not directly in front of Orochimaru backed up to cover up the door to their leader. Sighing to himself he moved his wrist ever so slightly when his legendary blade came out of his arm, the Kusanagi no Tsurugi, and quickly with the speed few could follow rammed it into the man in front of him. Blood shot out of his back and covered the three guards behind. As if this wasn't enough to scare the rest stiff they looked over and saw Orochimaru using his long tongue to lick the blood off the end of the sword that was sticking out of the victims back while staring into the fear ridden eyes of his next victim. Orochimaru quickly pulled out his blade and watched as the body slumped to the floor without as much as one sound except for the blade being pulled out. Orochimaru turned to the other the three and smiled sinisterly. What happened next was a quick and brutal slashing of the guards leaving them bleeding out or dead before they hit the floor. Orochimaru smiled at his handy work and calmly pushed open the door to the throne room. Everything in there was full of gold plating and marble floors and all of it was leading up to the massive throne that was fashioned out of gold and jewels of the finest caliber. Twenty or so guards made their presence known as they closed in on Orochimaru but did not attack. Instead they cleared a path for their lord to walk through. He was shorter than Orochimaru expect but most likely had a shrewd business mind. He was a tan man with short spikey brown hair and brown eyes. He was clad in a full set of body armor made of impressive materials. Finally he spoke in a sarcastic and insulting tone of voice.

"What the hell do you wan-" was all the man managed to get out before he blinked an saw himself looking up at his body without his head on top of it. After a brief moment his head groggily put the memories together and determined that his body no longer had his head on top of it. He tried to scream but nothing came out as his body feel to the floor in a pool of its own blood. The other remaining guards looked completely shocked that not only was their boss and lord dead but they hadn't even seen the strike coming. It was far too fast for their untrained eyes to follow along. Orochimaru looked up from the body and at the surrounding members and grinned. He told them all to leave his land as he now owned it and if anybody was caught in this land again he would personally seek them out and rectify their poor choice in judgment. The thugs quickly scurried out of the castle and told their friends the same thing who panicked just the same. In around fifteen minutes tops the entire town was cleared of any and all of Toshima's former thugs. As soon as the city was clear the towns' people literally jumped for joy and started clapping loudly while whooping and hollering, Hell a few people even high-fived each other! The joyous occasion lasted a few good minutes as it took such time for Orochimaru to come down from the castle. Once down the people began to turn and clap for him, happy that he had ended their eight year plight. Orochimaru smiled slightly for a certain reason. He had come to this land in hopes of finding people he could train to become powerful ninja and help him defend his son in the meantime. Sure Kabuto was an excellent spy and servant but he would need a lot more people than just him and himself to be able to fight back when the time came. That's why he traveled for so long. He was hoping to encounter these people that showed promise. Instead he had stumbled upon this town instead. Thinking like the snake that he is he knew that no snake could survive for long without having its own hole to go back to. That is exactly what he had intended to do with this town. He would turn it into a great Shinobi village as well. This place had the perfect basis for money to come rolling in plus there were enough natural dangers to train people on before they took over and started doing missions. Snapping out of his thought Orochimaru raised his hands up to silence the people when Ryu came out of the crowd and bowed deeply to him. Orochimaru smirked as he knew he could get used to this kind of treatment.

"May we know the name of our savior and future leader?" Ryu asked.

"Orochimaru." He said with that smirk never leaving his lips. Ryu smiled and turned around and gave some long speech about the oppression being lifted and how they can finally move on with their lives properly. It was a good day for the village and one that would become memorialized in the future for the village history.

(Two months later)

Orochimaru was in his office and he was pissed. There was no other way to say it. He was absolutely pissed. You see on his desk was a stack of papers. Normally this wouldn't be so bad but for some reason the papers kept on growing every hour and never seemed to stop. Sighing in defeat Orochimaru began to rub his temples until he heard a knock. He was grateful for the good distraction and welcomed in his advisor Ryu who had a smile on his face and a folder in his hand that read out "Academy" as he set it on Orochimaru's desk.

"Orochimaru-sama we have a bit of a problem. The building of the academy is going swiftly and to your exact specifications but seeing as how we have no style we have no way to train them. Each of the great villages have a certain style they teach the young ones that make them stand out above the rest." Ryu stated wisely as he seemed to pick up all of his Fathers good traits of advising. Orochimaru smiled as he had been thinking of something similar for a while now. In fact he started thinking about it right after he shut down the old slave factory and turned it into useful scrap metal. It was around that time that the idea hit him and he had seriously pondered it. Finally coming to a decision he spoke.

"Ryu get me a request to change the village name." Ryu gave his master a quizzical look and made Orochimaru chuckle softly. "When the Academy is done we will train them in a hidden and unseen art. One that no one expects to encounter but does every second of the day. We will train them in the art of the sounds and thus the village by association. Hence forth we shall be known as Otogakure, The Village Hidden by Sound!"

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Today was the day! The legendary day where ones greatness began and soon all would tremble and respect him! Today was the start of the Academy for our young Naruto and Hinata. Naruto was so pumped up for the day that he hardly gotten any sleep. The only amount of sleep he got was when he deeply reflected over how fast the last two months have gone and how close he and Hinata had gotten. Having no one in his life made things rough but as long as Hinata was there he was happy. By association the Hyuuga Family had come to accept him except for the elders who saw him as the snake and fox demon. Even Neji who was hit rough by his father's death had learned through Naruto that some things aren't controlled by fate and you can change yourself. It was hard for the young Hyuuga to accept this line of thought and the two ended up break into and all out brawl with Naruto constantly coming back after Neji despite his vastly better skills in fighting. Neji could hardly believe himself and that's when it clicked in his head. Since then Neji had worked extremely hard to become nicer and softer towards others when it mattered. Even his training seemed to improve when his new attitude took place. The blonde ball of energy was almost shaking with excitement so when the ray of light and his alarm had gone off he practically shot off his bed and threw on his orange tracksuit and sped out the door and to the Hyuuga house. While on his way there he had thought about how far he had come in his training while working the Hyuuga. Hell he had even developed his own style ironically named "Snake's Bite". This style relied heavily on his natural flexibility and his ability to counter attack by dodge and striking or "Biting" back as Naruto put it. Now he was far from strong in this style or against anyone for that matter. Sure he was getting a head start but the other families had their own style and they trained in it all the time! This reminded him of Hinata who had come far in her families Gentle Fist style that focused on the internal damage part of combat and focused on closing off chakra points in the system to severely damage people. Still nowhere near Neji's skill in the style it was enough to satisfy her father and by extension the council to keep her as heir to the clan. Rounding the last corner Naruto's smile brightened widely as he looked and noticed Hiashi and Hinata waiting outside. The two looked over in his direction and smiled, Hinata more so than Hiashi. Hinata waved and Hiashi simply nodded and made their way over to the Academy to meet their teacher. The three chatted while heading over to the Academy. Well more like Naruto boasting about how he was going to be the greatest Shinobi and Hokage of all time and Hinata blushing at his antics while Hiashi just shook his head at the two who he noticed were growing awfully close to each other. Hiashi smiled as this is what Minati would have wanted them to do if she were still alive. After a few more minutes they finally arrived at the drop off zone at the Academy where kids of all kind were saying by to their parents and went inside the building. Naruto and Hinata turned around smiled and with a slight bow turned and went inside to their room, Number 213.

Naruto pushed open the door and noticed they were the first ones in the room, not even the teacher had shown up yet. Naruto waved Hinata in an asked her where she thought they should sit. Hinata being the shy girl that she is suggested the back row and Naruto being the gentlemen that he is quickly agreed and walked up there with her and took their seats and waited for everyone else.

"Isn't this awesome Hinata!?" Naruto asked her and nearly jumped out of his seat getting a small 'eep' from Hinata as she blushed at her crushes loud actions. They seemed to be the perfect polar opposites. Naruto was loud and brash while Hinata was quiet and soft. Quite the mix indeed.

"Y-yes it is N-Naruto-kun." She tried to sound as excited as he was but came nowhere near the blondes natural enthusiasm that would make Maito Guy shed a youthful tear. Soon the door swung open and Naruto almost instantly switched personas. His eyes quickly kept darting around and his palms became sweaty and his stomach became one big knot. Hinata noticed this. Hinata pieced together that this happened right as a girl with platinum blonde hair walked in through the door followed by a girl with pink hair and a large forehead. Hinata failed to notice the three boys that walked in. One with a lazy expression on his face and black pineapple styled hair followed by a plump kid eating a bag of chips and a dog looking boy with a tiny dog in his hood. Doubts began to run through the poor girls head. 'Naruto-kun like blonde or pink hair?' Hinata tried to envision herself with either color hair and decided it just wasn't in the cards. Hinata tapped him on the shoulder and asked him to lean in so she could whisper to him.

"Is e-everything alright N-Naruto-kun?" she quietly asked him and he turned his head and sheepishly smiled at her.

"Of c-course!" He tried to sound confident but it didn't seem to work on the stubborn Hyuuga. Naruto held the expression a bit longer in hopes it might work but slumped his shoulders in defeat. He leaned towards the Hyuuga to whisper something. He noticed the girl got redder and redder the closer he got.

"Truth is I am really nervous!" He whispered quietly to her and hung his head in defeat as he hated admitting weakness. He was surprised when her felt a hand clasp around his and heard a small sweet voice whisper to him "its okay. I-I am too." Naruto smiled and gave the hand a squeeze and was about to ask her something when a puff of smoke appeared in front of the room. After the smoke cleared there was a man standing there. This man was wearing the standard gear for all those chunnin and above with the blue under suit and chunnin vest. He wore his headband directly on his forehead. He had tan skin with a scar that ran across his nose with his hair in a pony-tail and he was smiling.

"Greetings everyone! I will be your teacher for these next four years, my name is Umino Iruka and now I would like to learn a little about each of you." The now identified Iruka spoke with his voice filled with happiness. The rest of the day went on with them just talking about themselves along with some goals and aspirations that they had. Of course everyone got a big kick out of Naruto proclaiming that he wanted to be Hokage and be the best one there ever was. Hinata simply blushed and noticed that as the day went on he never let go of her hand. Soon everyone departed from that day and went to their separate homes. Naruto gave Hinata a quick hug before going home much to the delight of the Hyuuga girl as she blushed up a storm while her father took her home.

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(Time Skip: four years)

The last four years have sped by in a blur of memories and happiness. Naruto and Hinata had met at the Hyuuga compound each day and walked together each day talking more about the events of the previous days teaching to make sure each one understood and remembered everything. Much to Hiashi's surprise Naruto often had to relay the information to Hinata as she would forget the smaller details. Hiashi noticed that Naruto had almost untold skills at being able to remember and learn new things in a miniscule amount time. Naruto, though praised as a genius, struggled with his chakra control and could not for the life get down making a single bushin. It wasn't until Hinata simply suggested that he make more than one that it solved his problem. After such he gave her a big bone crushing hug, much to the little girls delight. All class period they would pay very close attention to the lesson and take many notes that they would study late into the night, more so Naruto than Hinata in the intense study habits area. They even went and ate lunch together and share amusing stories or went over notes or just simply spent that time together enjoying each other's company. Many had assumed the two were already a couple much to the joy of the blushing girl and embarrassed blonde. Using the buddy system the two seemingly created they had managed to rise to the top of the class with Naruto being the Overall best and Hinata being the best Kunoichi in her class. The two practically dominated everything they were put into. When it came to spars Naruto could simply not be hit while using his special style of fighting much to the rage of certain raven haired Uchiha. Hinata was just far too deadly to get close to with her Gentle Fist repulsing just about everyone that dared to get close. Even Naruto was deathly afraid to get to close to that style when they started sparing against each other.

Everything Academy wise went smooth as could be for the two, or at least that's what Naruto wanted Hinata to believe. You see one day Naruto was feeling abnormally very sick and extremely dizzy and passed out during an exercise they were performing. He woke up in the Nurses office and was immediately sent home. When he got home he slowly shut the door and promptly passed out again. When he next awoke it was late into the night as the moon was on full rise. Naruto got up and went to the bathroom and screamed in shock as he looked in the mirror. His once deep blue eyes were silted and a bright vibrant green color. He blinked a few times thinking it was just a bad dream he was having and much to his delight his eyes were blue again. When he met up with Hinata and Hiashi again he assured them it was just something he ate and sheepishly left it at that.

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Alas this is where we find Naruto and Hinata. This is the day of the genin graduation test for all of those who qualify as Konoha Shinobi. Naruto watched as all the others went and got their headbands and left the building. Row by row the kids went up and performed the two jutsu the Academy had them do. The Henge and the Bushin jutsus. Seeing as how Hinata was seated next to him she came before him. He cheered her on and told her he believed in her. She just smiled and blushed and performed the two Jutsu flawlessly. She was given her headband and waited for Naruto. He performed the Henge to a perfect tee and created around twenty or so perfect clones of himself stunning his teacher and earning his headband. His cheers of joy could be heard all throughout the Academy scaring some of the younger students. The two 12 year old now genin were told to return tomorrow at the beginning of class to get their sensei's that would be teaching them. The two nodded and bowed before they left. A few hours later after a celebration at the Hyuuga compound we find the two outside on a bench basking in the moon light of the garden at the Hyuuga Gardens, Hinata's favorite place.

The two were staring up at the Moon when Naruto spoke up "Hinata were friends right?"

Hinata turned and looked the bigger boy in the eyes carefully and nodded "Y-yes we a-are. Why d-do you a-ask?"

"That means I can tell you anything right?" Once again the Hyuuga princess nodded and was beginning to get worried.

"Heh, how do I put this ummmm…" He nervously scratched the back of his head.

"J-j-just t-tell me w-what it is." This was it Hinata thought. This is where he was going to tell her that he just wanted to be friends and nothing more_. 'How would I move on? Could I move on? Could I ever love anyone as much as I do with Naruto-kun?' _She was seriously nervous now as thoughts flooded her mind.

"O-okay, well whenever I'm around you I get this weird feeling in my stomach and I feel a bit lighter like I'm stuck in some weird genjutsu and no matter how hard I try I can't break out of it." Hinata giggled a bit as she remembered some days Naruto seemed distracted and was constantly pinching himself. When she looked back up at Naruto, she blushed a deep shade of red. His blue orbs staring directly at her and were shining off the moonlight "I never had anyone that was there for me this much like you have been and I'm not too good with emotions but I think there is only one that fits with what I am feeling: love." As he said Hinata's face turned and impossible shade of red as she thought _'N-N-Naruto-kun L-l-l-loves m-m-me?'_

It was at this point of self-realization that Hinata noticed Naruto was inching his way closer to her face. His eyes were half-lidded as he made his approach to her. Hinata kept chanting in her head not to pass out during this moment. She stared in his partially showing eyes and slowly moved her face to his. After what seemed like hours the two found their lips touch and press against each other. They both closed their eyes and let the warm happy feeling spread between them. The knot in Naruto's stomach he was trying to explain to Hinata went away signaling that this is what he wanted subconsciously all along. Hinata was just doing everything in her power to stop from fainting again despite the situation. The lip contact was brief but to the two genin it felt like forever. Eventually they pulled apart and looked up at the moon while holding hands. Neither one of them said anything to each other the rest of the night, happy with the moment just being how it is. Unbeknownst to them a certain clan head had watched the scene with great interest and smiled at the two before retiring to his study.

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Outside the walls of Konoha in a section of the forest few knew about was a man with a hood on and only showed his black rimmed glasses on his face. The man had just arrived there and seemed to be waiting for something to happen when suddenly he heard a noise and turned towards the noise.

"Did everything go to plan then?" The second shadow figure spoke.

"Yes, everything is in place. Soon the boy will be yours."

The second figure chuckled before breaking out into a full blown laugh as he was finally about to get what is his.

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**A/N: Hohohohoho Naruto you sly charmer you! Twelve years old and already swingin the ladies huh? Whats this about some random guy after some boy?! Find out next time! Hope yall enjoyed the chapter and see ya next time! As always if you enjoy my story please do not hesitate to leave a review. Gives me the fuel to keep pushing forward! Ja ne!**


	5. Chapter 5: What you can't handle

Chapter 5: What you can't handle

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Summary: Naruto bites off more than he can bargain with his first C-ranked mission and learns a crippling truth about himself.

A/N: This story will not have the land of waves arc as I find that to be nothing but a word booster when it comes to stories. Unless something super drastic happens it is pointless to me so I will not subject you too it. In this story Naruto is not paired up with Team Seven. Instead he is in Team eight. Team Seven is forged up of Sai, Sakura, and Sasuke. They will be in this story but Naruto will not be with them. As too the bit of romance that happened last chapter that was put there to intentionally confuse you as readers as to what the pairing will be. With that said on with Chapter five!  
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Naruto was having one of the most pleasant dreams he had ever had in his short and unpleasant life. He was dreaming that after four years of constant hard work and effort he had finally graduated from the Konohagakure no Sato Academy for Shinobi at the top of his class! What made this dream even better is that he had graduated from said institution with his best friend Hyuuga Hinata!

_Hyuuga Hinata_…

The shy and meek little girl that sat next to him all year. The same girl that used to have problems with self-confidence. The same one that seemed to faint every time she was near him. The girl he had shared his first kiss with. Naruto blissfully smiled in his sleep as he remembered the details of that very dream. He loved this dream in every way because to him it had felt so beyond real that nothing could ever compare to it and sent him floating away on cloud nine without a single care in the world. Well that was only half true because right about now his dream would be shattered.

_BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!_

His alarm clock screamed at him to wake up for something very important today! Naruto quickly panicked and attacked the alarm with deadly accuracy effectively hitting the snooze button before unplugging it from the wall. Damn that machine for waking him up! What could possibly be so important that he needed to set an alarm? Naruto rubbed his temples with fervor in a desperate attempt to remember what he needed to do today. Something with the Academy he thought. Then it hit him. As he mind had woken up it felt necessary to remind his body that a foreign weight was on his head. His hands moved up to his forehead in disbelief of the brain only to feel something metallic on his head. He dashed over to the bathroom an noticed he had on his Leaf village headband! So he did actually graduate last night! What a relief he thought it was just a lie!

'OH CRAP!' Naruto thought as he remembered he had to be at the Academy in a few minutes to meet his Jounin sensei and get his assigned team. He got dressed in a speedy blur of tan skin then eventually an orange blur dashed out of the room with his blonde mop flying in the wind.

He dashed around the streets beaming his way to the ever noble Hyuuga clan compound whilst getting weird and uncertain looks from some villagers while he got the same old angry glares from others. He did not mind though as he was too happy today to even worry about something as pitiful as what people thought of him. As long as he had Hinata he would be fine! He rounded the infamous last corner onto the street that led directly to the Hyuuga compound where a tomato red Hinata and smirking Hiashi were standing waiting on him as usual. He dashed over and did a small bow to Hiashi and put his head behind his head and sheepishly rubbed the back of his head as he mumbled some apology an explained his situation about an evil machine attacking his ear drums and paralyzing him. Naruto really wasn't sure what to say in case last night was really a dream. He certainly didn't want to embarrass Hinata any further than she already was it seemed. The trio turned and made their way to the Academy.

This trip was nowhere near the norm for the three. Naruto, who was unsure of what to say to Hinata kept his mouth relatively shut. Hinata, who was unsure of what was going on with Naruto thought that maybe he didn't mean what he said last night or was having doubts about her. This made her revert back to her former self of silence and pushing her index fingers together slightly. Hiashi on the other hand merely observed the two with an amused expression on his normally stoic face. Once there Hiashi bid the two farewell and good luck for the day. The two began to walk in when Naruto spoke up first of the two, albeit quietly "Hey Hinata?"

Hinata snapped out of her self-induced depression and self-pity when she heard his slightly more masculine voice. "Y-y-yes Naruto-kun?"

"About last night…" this threw Hinata into a panicked state of mine.

_'This is it! He going to tell me he thinks I'm too weak to be in presence or to be his girlfriend. He is going to leave me…'_ Hinata thought before slumping her shoulders in depression. Naruto noticed this but decided to not say anything to her.

"It…..it was real right?" He stopped in his tracks and looked into her pale eyes that were threating to form tears in her eyes. Then she suddenly smiled a smile that was loaded with a last hope.

"Y-y-y-yes it w-w-was." A few seconds of silence passed over them before he smiled his megawatt smile and hugged her tightly much to the young girls delight.

"Just had to make sure is all!" the emotion of the moment followed by the intense burst of happiness was far too much for the little girl to handle who promptly fainted in his arms. He quickly scooped her up bridal style and took off to the academy with a true happy smile of his face that made other smiles just seem so lackluster.

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Naruto pushed open the door to his classroom and quickly made his way up to the top row where he and Hinata normally sat. He brushed off a few insults from a kid with a tiny white dog that seemingly yapped whenever its master got happy or proud of himself which was nearly all the time. They sat down and after roughly ten minutes Hinata had woken up. Naruto explained the situation and she blushed but nodded. Soon Iruka showed up and began to explain the team list. Naruto grabbed Hinata's hand afraid of the fact they may become separated.

"Alright class, settle down! First I would like to congrad- I SAID SETTLE DOWN!" Iruka yelled while activating his big head jutsu. Finally getting them to settle down he continued "As I was saying congratulations on passing the graduation examine and becoming genin of the Leaf Village. Today you will be meeting your jonin senseis. This year will be a bit different. Each group is going to be made for a certain purpose. Whether that purpose is shock and awe or intelligence depends on the Jonin. Now we will begin the team assignments!" He ran through a few minor teams that were assigned for support before getting to the more important ones.

"…and Team seven will be comprised of Haruno Sakura, Sai and…" the room grew deathly quiet as they awaited the last member of the team. "…Uchiha Sasuke." Sai remained impartial to the decision as he could care less whoever was put on his team. Of course having Sasuke on his team meant he could give far more detailed reports to Danzo when the time came. Sakura was absolutely exploding with joy and delight as she was the one who got to be with her precious Sasuke-kun and not Ino-pig. She ran over and squeezed Sasuke much to his dismay and Sai's entertainment. Naruto and Hinata both breathed a slight sigh of relief as neither one of them had been chosen yet and had a greater chance of getting into a team together with each other.

"Next up is Team Ten. Team leader is Yuhi Kurenai that specializes in tracking. Team members are Aburame Shino, Hyuuga Hinata and…..Uzumaki Naruto!" Iruka finished with a big smile on his face as he glanced up from his sheet and noticed both Naruto and Hinata seemingly jump out of their respective seats. Hinata and Naruto tuned out the rest of what Iruka had to say until it came to announcement.

"Alright! Now that all of you have your Senseis please wait thirty more minutes for them to show up. From there they will tell you where to meet them and at what time. It was truly a pleasure to teach you all. I am sure that the Will of Fire will burn brightly in each of you!" With his final speech, Iruka left the Academy until he promptly bumped into a person with grey hair in a ponytail and black rimmed glasses.

"Ah my bad Kabuto." Iruka sheepishly rubbed the back of his head in a very Naruto like fashion. Kabuto simply gave him a practiced smile and waved his hand and told him not to worry about it. Iruka smiled and nodded his head at the genin and watched him as he walked past. He stopped in front of the room Naruto was in and smiled a true smile. Iruka pondered what this meant but brushed it off. If only Iruka knew.

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Naruto and Hinata had just got down having a conversation with their teammate Shino. They had learned a bit about his clan and about his method of using bugs that fed off his chakra system. They were slightly freaked out but welcomed the Aburame with open arms despite his bugs. This was a nice reprieve from the normal treatment he got. The two had their conversation stopped when their sensei walked through the door and told them to meet her on Training ground 24 aka the Hunter's Paradise.

It had taken the three of them around ten minutes to find the training ground. Once they did they found the red eyed woman standing before them with a blanket on the ground large enough to seat all three of them. The women motioned for them to sit down and they did so. She smiled and spoke in a slightly joyful tone.

"I trust you three found this place easy enough?" The three nodded.

"Very good. Well before we get started with the test id liked to learn a little bit about each of you. To demonstrate this I'll go first. My name is Yuhi Kurenai. I like reading and Genjutsu. I hate perverts and men who think they are superior to women. There now your turn." She said pointing to Shino.

Shino raised his head and spoke in a flat and logic filled voice "My name is Aburame Shino. I enjoy collecting bugs and adding them to my collection. I dislike people who dislike bugs." The other three simply nodded as Kurenai pointed to Hinata.

"My N-name is Hyuuga H-Hinata. I l-like cinnamon rolls and N-Naruto-kun. I d-dislike bullies a-and p-p-prejudice." Naruto blushed slightly at the mention of his name and nodded when the other three did. Kurenai pointed to him with a smile.

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto! I like Hinata-chan and learning. I dislike toads and bullies. Oh and I am going to be the future Hokage! The greatest ever! Believe it!" As he said the last part everyone just glared at him like they were trying to kill him with just their eyes alone. Naruto sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Not gunna catch on eh? Thought I'd try it out heh."

Shaking her head Kurenai continued "Not quite Naruto. Now this is supposed to be the team of trackers so that is what the test is going to be over. You guys are going to get three hours to pick up my trail and find. If you fail to find me in that time then you go back to the Academy for a year." With that she smiled one last time before using the body flicker to travel elsewhere leaving the three newly minted genin stunned and on their own and to their own devices.

"Alright guys what can we use?" Naruto asked while looking to his two teammates.

"My bugs can track the local area at all times and report to me their findings within the said perimeter." Shino stated plainly.

"I-I can use my Byakugan t-to search a-as well." Naruto nodded.

"I will use my advanced hearing to search for any movements." With their decision made the three jumped into the trees and took off.

It had been roughly an hour and a half since they took off. They had charged into the forest searching for anything that might lead to their hidden sensei. They searched and searched but sadly came up with nothing but false leads. Whenever they would get a trail that Shino's bugs pointed out they would follow it until the trail came closer. Hinata would use her eyes to see if Kurenai was there before they jumped down. Most of the time it was nothing but dead ends. They had just gotten up from following another dead end when Naruto heard a sound of leaves falling only a few feet from them. Naruto quickly pounced up to the branch and quickly followed the sound.

Kurenai smirked. The boy did indeed have amazing hearing like they said he would. She had barely made a single noise and yet there he was. Right on top of her trail in a heartbeat. She ran through a few hand seals and launched a lowly genjutsu at him designed by her to put people into a pleasant dream. She smiled. But not because it had worked. It hadn't fazed Naruto at all. She wondered why exactly it had not affected him until she looked closer at what seemed like a black spot on his face.

_'Of course! Shino can use his bugs that are loaded with his chakra to inject his teammates to knock them out of a genjutsu if need be but also to keep track of them while in the forest. Very good!'_

She snapped out of her thoughts when suddenly Hinata was in front of her with a meek smile on her face. Kurenai smiled back and gave the group a thumbs up. Needless to say Naruto jumped high into the air and rushed over to Hinata and hugged her much to her joy. Shino simply nodded and smiled which was an extremely rare thing to see from the stoic Aburame. Finally Naruto's list of precious people had grown and he had the beginnings of his own family. Something he would cherish with everything he had. He would also defend it with his life.

(Three months later)

Time had flown by for the newly minted Team eight. You see because they were the tracking group they were given nearly every single D-ranked mission that revolved around finding something that was lost or hiding. In fact that is where we find out little heroes now!

Suddenly Naruto's radio burst to life with a soft and lovely voice that he had grown very much attached to, He smiled and listened intently to the news the voice brought " Moonlight to Foxy boy do you copy?"

"Foxy boy here, go ahead Moonlight."

"Target in sight. Heading your way with Bug town close behind it."

"Roger that Moonlight. Foxy boy moving into position C now."

With that Naruto crouched and anxiously waited for the target to come into sight. Within seconds the target was seen speeding down the street with blinding speed that could only be matched by the late Fourth Hokage. Naruto licked his lips and his heart pounded with anticipation. Soon the black and white blur was right in front of him and he leaped. The leap only lasted a few seconds but for Naruto it felt like an eternity. He looked into the eyes of the enemy and the eyes looked back. Naruto collided with the enemy and a small scuffle broke out between the two with Naruto coming out on top!

"HA! I GOT IT!" Naruto said as he held up the aforementioned enemy. He had finally caught the legendary ninja trained cat! Kurenai face-faulted and went to report the mission as success with her team just outside the Hokage tower awaiting their next mission. After roughly thirty minutes she stepped out of the tower with a slightly worried expression on her face.

"Hey Kurenai-sensei what's wrong?" Naruto asked curious as to what would shake up his sensei so much.

"Well Naruto. We finally got a C-ranked mission." The moment the words left her lips her ears instantly regretted the decision as they were bombarded with sounds waves of a high pitched frequency coming from a hyper active blonde haired shinobi. Naruto was practically screaming and jumping for joy screaming something along the lines of 'One step toward Hokage' or something along those lines. Hinata merely blushed at his antics as per usual and Shino merely glared through his glasses at the obnoxious blonde. "Alright Naruto calm down you haven't even heard what the mission is yet. We are to pack up our things for a two week trip out to the boarder of the Land of Rice to help a town on the edge patch up a few breaches in their security." If Kurenai thought he was excited before than she was knocked over by this new wave of enthusiasm emitted from the blonde. "Everyone go home for the night and rest and be at the front gate at ten in the morning and DON'T be late, Naruto." The aforementioned gaki rubbed the back of his head and promised he would be on time. With that team eight dispersed till they would meet again at the gate.

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(The next day, with Team eight)

Team Eight had just left Konohagakure no Sato on their very first ever C-ranked mission. Sure it was no special mission but still it would go on his record. All they had to do was simply go to a village that was boarding the Land of Rice that had been getting squashed repeatedly but an unknown force of unknown strength. Rumor has it that Suna had sent shinobi there as well in an attempt to do what Team Eight was doing. This is what unnerved Kurenai so much. The Suna team was brutally murdered and sent back to Suna in tiny little pieces and bloodied headbands. However she would not allow that to happen to her team if she had anything to say about it. In fact there was almost no way any one would possibly be able to sneak up on them during this mission. Shino had his bugs constantly on the lookout for anything that may cause a problem. Hinata had her Byakugan for seeing everything around her and all times if need be as well. Naruto had a sense of hearing that was very finely tuned. He could listen in and block out sounds when he needed to. Then there was Kurenai herself who was an advanced sensor type who could feel any and all chakra that would enter her sensory range. Yes getting the drop on them would be indeed hard. It's a shame that someone already was about to get the jump on them. Or at least would be getting the jump on them soon enough.

After roughly a few days' worth of traveling they had finally reached their intended target. The small town of Shizo. The town prided itself on two things. The quality of the swords it made and the ability to be self-reliant. At the open gate they were met by the soon to be introduced leader of this village.

"Ah! Hello! You must be the shinobi sent from Konoha correct?" the middle aged man asked.

"Yes we are. My Name is Yuhi Kurenai. This here is Naruto, Hinata and Shino." Kurenai spoke and pointed to the respective people when their names were called out. "We are here to patch up that hole in security you have here?"

The man rubbed his beard for a second while he pondered the group of kids before him then he spoke while slowly turning his gaze away from the kids and up to the red eyed women "Yes I figured as much. Come allow me to explain the situation while we walk." The group walked into town as they listened to his speech "You see about oh I'd say three weeks ago our town guards had been getting killed at night. One at a time. One per night. At first we thought it was an inside job due to the fact the cuts that killed the guards were made with an extremely well-crafted sword. Around the same quality we have here and give to our guardsmen to defend us with. We quickly ruled that out after the few people we had suspected for the crimes were all killed off as well. I'll be honest. I have no clue who it could be if it is internal. If it is external then I am even more stunned. I wish you the best of luck and hope you will do better than that Suna team did." With that the man trotted off to his house which was just a few blocks away from his departing location.

Kurenai sighed. This was indeed going to be a long two weeks.

(Around one week later. Midnight)

"AHHH!" Naruto screamed as he woke up.

_'Damn it! Why did I have to have a nightmare now?! I'm so tired but I don't think I be going back to bed anytime soon. Well may as well go sit outside and enjoy the cool night air. Yeah!'_

Naruto was particularly tired this day due to its strenuous activities. You see earlier today Naruto and the rest of Team Eight had bumped into the killer that had been whacking all the guards. He was an ex-ANBU for the Suna. Naruto shuddered as he remembered the events while getting dressed.

(Flashback)

The Ex-ANBU member simply stared at them through his dog mask. There was no doubt in his eyes. He wanted to kill the four of them. Naruto was at the fore front of the group with Hinata to his left and Shino to his right. Kurenai was in the back while she locked eyes with man.

"Hey Baka! Why are you harming these innocent people!?" Naruto asked while pointing a finger at the man who just lowered his eyes and stared at him. Hinata looked over to Naruto with worry on her face. Shino on the other hand quickly muttered something about how illogical it is to taunt someone who is far above their league.

"I do this…for myself." The man spoke with a low rumble in his voice. With this he reached behind his back and pulled out his katana. He held it right in front of his face and vanished in a whirlwind of speed. Moments later the clang of metal could be heard as Naruto looked up and noticed both Kurenai and the ANBU were engaged in a fight. They moved way too fast for Naruto's vision to follow but his hearing kept him will abreast of the situation and what was going on. Before they knew it Kurenai and the Suna ANBU reappeared before them. It was painfully obvious that Kurenai was losing the up close Kenjutsu fight. Kurenai jumped back and ran through a few hand seals and mumbled something unintelligible. Instantly the man grabbed his head in pain and doubled over. Naruto broke out of his frozen state and lunged at the man with a fist loaded with chakra to enhance his strength. He plowed his fist into his face and sent him into a nearby tree. The man simply got up and shook off the dust and wood chippings on his person.

"Not….bad" With that he quickly tossed his sword into Naruto's shoulder and pinned him to the tree he was behind. Naruto howled in pain as he went to work trying to pull out the sword. He was speedily working on it till he heard a scream. Naruto turned and was engaged with pure horror and fear. The ANBU was holding Hinata by the throat and had knocked Shino out and sent him to a tree with a swift kick to the chest.

"Pale eyes. You must be a Hyuuga. Kumo would love to…..have you." He said as he continued to choke Hinata.

_'NO! This can't be happening to Hinata-chan! I-I have to help her! Please! I need the strength to help her!'_

The moment he finished his inner monologue he felt something. Something deep within him. It was blinding pain coursing through his veins and through his blood. It caused his head to pound and throb in the most excruciatingly painful way possible. It felt like every cell of his body was being dipped in acid, healed up then dipped in acid again. Naruto closed his head to use what little mental power he had to block out the pain of the moment.

The ex-ANBU from Suna dropped the girl instantly as he felt a level of killer intent that should not be possible for anyone in the nearby area. He looked around. The Pale eyed girl was knocked out. The Weird bug kid followed suit. The Red eyed girl was nowhere to be found but if he remembered correctly he had left her with a clone to fight. So that only left…..The Blonde. The ANBU turned and looked at Naruto with wide eyes. Chakra was not visible unless used in large amounts. So how could this mere genin be able to produce such strong chakra. And why was it red? Before he could think anymore his sword came swinging at hit. He caught it effortlessly but was surprised none the less.

**"How dare you hurt Hinata-chan!" **Naruto roared in a demonic tone of voice as he dropped down to all fours. To say the experienced ANBU was scared would be an understatement. Naruto didn't give him enough time to think about how scared he was when suddenly the man found himself getting and overwhelming claw to his face. Sending him sailing back through a few hundred feet and a couple trees. This was only the beginning. The moment the man recovered Naruto was there and delivered a thundering uppercut to his jaw that sent him like a missile towards the sky. Naruto was already there when he reached his peak height. Naruto gathered a large amount of the red chakra in his lungs and shouted at the man and sent him flying towards the ground at an inescapable speed. Once he hit the ground he formed a large twenty meter long and wide crater in the earth. Naruto summoned a clone and had him swing him to the ground before puffing out of reality.

**"And this is for my team!"** Naruto said as he loaded the Chakra in his hand once more and unleashed it upon the man's stomach causing him to launch a torrent of blood on Naruto's face. Naruto looked over to see his team mates safe and recovering before he promptly passed out due to exhaustion. Kurenai showed up after dealing with clone and shaking off her fear upon feeling a very familiar presence of evil. She was beyond amazed that the blonde gaki was able to beat down the ANBU and save the team by himself. She wondered how he would be affected by using that chakra. She sighed and picked up her team and went to go to rest and their hotel they rented for the duration of the mission.

(Flashback End)

Naruto pushed the door open and took in the night time air as he breathed it in deeply. He turned his head and looked up at the night sky and at the moon. The moon always made him feel safer as if he was more hidden from the world and their glares.

Naruto's ears twitched as he heard something off in the distance. He pulled up a kunai to defend him self and turned to the direction that he heard the sound. Out of the shadows came a little brown and black spotted snake. Naruto looked at it with an odd expression. The snake coiled up and looked at him in the eyes. Naruto couldn't help it but he felt a connection with snakes for some reason.

"Couldn't sleep either huh?" Naruto asked the snake as if it would respond to him.

"Now that you mention it not really." Naruto looked around then back at the snake.

"That couldn't have been you right?" Naruto asked the snake. The snake merely turned its head as if it was confused at the question.

The mysterious voice rang out again from the shadows "I assure you that it was not the snake that said that Naruto."

"How do you now my name?!" Naruto asked the shadows.

"Ah but you see my poor boy. I know a lot about you. Not as much as I had hoped I'll admit but indeed a lot."

"And who exactly are you? I can't tell with the shadows blocking your face." The man stepped out of the shadows and Naruto gasped with wide eyes.

"My name is Orochimaru"

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**A/N: Cliffhanger no jutsu! Sorry about the cliffy guys but I wanted the next chappie to have some build up so I decided I would cut it off at this point. I hope you all enjoyed chapter and what I did with it. If you like the chapter please review. It gives me the power to think of better ways to enhance the story. Anyways see you next time! Ja Ne!**

P.S If you have any questions you need answered please PM me and I will do my best to answer them for you.


	6. Chapter 6: The Truth

**Chapter 6: The Truth.**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Summary: Naruto meets Orochimaru and learns of new information that will rock him to his moral core.  
  
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"My name is Orochimaru."

Naruto looked up at the snake sannin in utter fear. He had heard of him. One of the Legendary Three Sannin. He was also rumored to be the strongest of three. He focused mainly on ninjutsu and has been known to do unsavory things to his test subjects. Though for what purpose Naruto could never figure out. That line of thought would have to wait until later. Right now Naruto was wondering just what on Earth Orochimaru would want with him.

"W-what do you want with m-me?" Naruto asked in fear of the tall pale man that stands before him. Orochimaru looked down at his son and softened his gaze. This was his first time interacting with his son and all so cut him some slack! Naruto seemed to respond to this by relaxing slightly.

"I'm here because me and you need to have a conversation…..alone." Orochimaru's eyes drifted upward and to the door where Kurenai was hiding. Naruto spun around just in time to see his sensei come out of the doorway with a stern look on her face and a kunai in her hand.

"Naruto come over here quickly. That man is Orochimaru of the Sannin and a missing nin from Konoha." Kurenai spoke with intensity and steel in her voice. Naruto looked utterly confused. Orochimaru had shown him no aggression what so ever and his gaze was soft. Although when he looked at Kurenai his gaze was that of war and pain.

"Naruto you can trust me. I will not hurt you. The fools of Konoha do not understand you like I do. All I ask for is five minutes alone. If you don't like what I have to say then I will not stop you and I will bring you back here." Orochimaru said as he held out his hand and looked softly upon his son hoping that he would take his hand and listen to him. This was his best chance to tell him. He spent a great deal of money on that ANBU agent from Suna to constantly attack this village. Hell he even had to promise him the curse mark. Of course Orochimaru didn't tell him that it had a very low survival rate of only one out of every ten people but oh well right?

Naruto looked completely torn. On one hand was Orochimaru of the sannin. He had promised him answers that he was looking for and wanted to hear. On the other hand was his sensei Kurenai who was like a mother he never had. She would always protect him from danger but Naruto could sense no danger from this man. He closed his eyes and thought about what he should do. Trust the unknown or go with what he does know? After several internal minutes of debate Naruto decided that if nothing is ventured then nothing is gained.

"I will go with you Orochimaru but even if I like what you have to say I want to come back and let the others know that I am safe." Orochimaru listened and nodded to his conditions. Kurenai seemed a bit uneasy but relaxed when she remembered that Naruto was a smart and responsible kid. She shot Orochimaru a hateful glare knowing that he is hated for a reason.

"I guess we should get going then?" Naruto asked as he took Orochimaru's hand. Orochimaru nodded and swung his son on to his back and jumped away. After a minute of high speed traveling Orochimaru landed in a small clearing in the forest that had a fire going with two short logs made for sitting. Orochimaru set Naruto down and sat down on one of the logs and motioned for him to sit down on the opposite one. Naruto did so and began to wander exactly what he could tell him that he would want to hear. Naruto got his answer real fast and it was more than he ever hoped to learn.

"Naruto do you know why exactly everyone calls you a demon?"

Much to Orochimaru's dismay Naruto shook his head no. (A/N: Naruto learned the Kage Bushin but Mizuki did not tell him of the Kyuubi.) Orochimaru sighed but he expected this.

"How much do you know of the Kyuubi?" Orochimaru asked with a look that hinted at a moment of depression. Naruto looked at him with a quizzical look before answering.

"As much as they teach when it comes to the Fourth Hokage. The Kyuubi attacked the village and was killed by the Yondaime." Orochimaru looked down and rubbed his eyes at the mention of the Yondaime then cleared his throat to speak.

"That is only somewhat true. I am honestly not surprised that old fool decided not to tell you of your true history. Get comfortable this is going to be a long story." Naruto shifted in his seat and Orochimaru continued " You see Naruto that a Bijuu cannot be killed by a mortal no matter how strong they are no matter how much we wish they could. Instead to contain the power they are sealed into a human being. This 'Human Sacrifice' is turned into the container for the Bijuu. This is what was done the Kyuubi but only partially. You see the Kyuubi is a being of immense power that could not wholly be contained in a human. This is where the Yondaime comes in. Bless her soul. She sealed the Yin part within herself and the Yang within her newborn child. Her only child at that. You see the Yin part was the Kyuubi's spiritual energy. The Yang part was its physical essence. Now you are probably wondering what this exactly has to do with you." Orochimaru stopped and took a deep breath prepping for his son's reaction. "Naruto you are the child that the Yang half was sealed inside. This means that the Yondaime is your mother. That seal you have on your stomach is the seal that holds that piece inside you."

Naruto blinked for a moment and looked at Orochimaru in an incredulous fashion before looking down and letting the tears flow. Naruto was a container for the most fear entity in the world. He instinctively reached up and held onto his stomach. It all suddenly made sense why the world had hated him it seemed like. It didn't make it any easier to bear but it at least answered all the times he would stay up late and yell at the heavens asking why they decided to curse him with the villager's incurable hate. He smiled briefly through the tears before sobbing harder_. 'Wait a minute. I have a mother! That means I have a family!' _Naruto thought and a warm sensation burned throughout his body and made him happier than he had been since that night with Hinata. Suddenly another question flew into his mind. If the Yondaime was his mother than whom exactly was his father?

"Orochimaru, if the Yondaime is my mother than who is my Father?" Orochimaru looked down at the ground and threw another log on the fire. He had been dreading this part of the meeting. Granted it had to be done but it didn't make it any easier for him to start. Orochimaru got up and placed his hand on Naruto's head and Naruto felt Chakra press into his system in a calm and slow place.

"Kai." Orochimaru said silently and the effects were instant. Naruto's short and spikey beach blonde hair slowly grew in length and turned midnight black. The hair stopped growing right as it got to just past his shoulder blades. Next to change was his skin tone. His skin turned from a beautiful sun kissed tan to a pale moonlight skin that had a creamy white look to it. Naruto blinked as his eyes began to change. Gone were the glowing blue orbs. Instead they were replaced with green silted snake like eyes. Much like Orochimaru's eye marking Naruto's appeared but with a blue tint instead of a purple one. Naruto's face became slightly more angular instead of being a wider and rounder shape. Naruto's body became a tad more slender and thinner.

Naruto looked down and saw that his skin was a milky white and he screamed wondering what exactly had happened. He heard Orochimaru say kai. Kai means release so that means Orochimaru released a genjutsu that was placed over him. Why was one placed on him in the first place?

As he was having his little internal debate Orochimaru held up a mirror to his sons face and Naruto screamed again as he noticed the changes in his face. Green silted eyes with blue under markings. Pale moonlight skin. Slender face. Long slicked back midnight black hair. Naruto couldn't explain it but this look felt more natural that his look before the transformation. Naruto actually like this look. It made him feel whole. Like a true human being. Naruto looked up to Orochimaru and noticed he was smiling. It hit Naruto then like a train. The man standing before him was his…..his…Father.

"Naruto I wanted to apolo-oof!" Orochimaru said as he was about to explain how sorry he was for not being there and he did try to send people in his stead to make him happy. This was when Naruto embraced him in a bone crushing hug with tears streaming down his cheeks. Orochimaru was at first completely stunned and at a loss for words at this moment. It took him a few moments before he returned the hug eagerly. For this one moment both Father and Son were truly happy. Naruto released his father and looked at him.

"Father, why did Kurenai-sensei seem to hate you so much?"

Orochimaru sighed as he would have to try and explain his goals.

"Son, before I met your mother I was a monster of unknown proportions. I did experiments on people to further my knowledge of the human body and how it works for one purpose. To gain the trait of immortality and so that no one close to me would ever have to die. I did this for your mother and myself so we could always be around for you. But when I was busy researching one day your mother stopped by an convinced me to stop and to appeal to the council so they might let us live in peace. I was willing to give up that dream for you and her. But when we approached the council about the idea they shot us down and insisted after the child is born we no longer see each other. Then the attack happened. When I saw what they wanted to do to you after the Kyuubi was placed in you I couldn't handle it. They wanted to turn you into a weapon of terror and strength. I couldn't let that happen but I was far too weak to do anything at that point after getting beaten by the infernal fox. I left the village and swore my revenge for you and your mother. Son, think of it this way. The entirety of Konoha could not stand to see me and your mother together. They would often send us death threats and try to assassinate us using hired Nin. They hated us and the love we shared. In a roundabout way they hated you as well as you grew inside your mother. The council threatened to murder her to keep the child from growing. I'm sorry you have to hear this like this but you needed to know."

Naruto looked down and stared at the ground. Something crept into his heart. He could feel it. It was colder than a thousand icy lakes. It made Naruto tighten his fists. How dare they do this to his Family. What gave them the right to do this? Naruto felt his heart freeze up and his eyes turn cold towards his village. He would never look at them in the same light.

"Father, thank you for telling me this. It means a lot to me knowing that you are out there and I have family looking out for me. What are we going to do now? I can't go back to the village looking like this. Those fools would take their misplaced and stupid hate out on me." Naruto spoke with an icy cold tone that caused his Father to smile warmly. His son understood and was on his side. Today was a good day.

"Well Naruto that is up to you. I am the leader of a village in the Land of Rice called Otogakure. I am the Otokage. I can promise that if you come with me you will be treated with the proper respect and you'll make a few friends along the way. You will be properly respected and I will personally train you with all my power and make you as good as I am one day after all the training and experience is done. But if you want to go back to the leaf I will reset the genjutsu on you and you can go back and live how you want. You will always be welcomed home with open arms should you chose."

Naruto's eyes widen and he smiled big and was about to accept when he remembered something that would indeed hold him back from accepting his offer.

_Hyuuga Hinata_

"Father I would love to go with you. I really have nothing back in Konoha except one person." Orochimaru raised an eye brow "What am I going to do about my girlfriend Hinata?"

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(With Kurenai)

Kurenai sat outside on a bench and nervously tapped her foot on the wooden floor while waiting for Naruto to get back from his conversation with Orochimaru. What could they be talking about she wondered. It had been well over five minutes so Naruto must have found it interesting to stay longer. Naruto was a smart kid with a good head on his shoulders despite his past. Still that didn't help her nerves. What was she thinking letting Naruto go with Orochimaru?! The most sick and twisted bastard to ever walk this Earth! Suddenly Kurenai shot up with a kunai and looked in the doorway. There stood Hinata in her night gown.

"K-Kurenai-sensei. Wh-whats wrong?" Hinata asked "A-and where is N-Naruto-kun?"

Kurenai sighed an saw no point in lying to her as with her eyes she could no doubt tell that she was lying to her. Kurenai explained the situation to her and watched as Hinata's face grew more and more worried with each word she said. By the end of the story Kurenai had to hold the poor girl back from charging off into the forest to look for her beloved. Kurenai managed to calm her down after a few minutes. During this time Shino showed up and offered some logical bits of comfort to help her out. Being the stubborn group that they were all insisted on waiting outside for Naruto to return.  
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(With Orochimaru and Naruto)

"Well Son I can't help you there. But know this. If it is truly love then she will find a way to be with you. Maybe when the Chunin exams are held in Konoha in a few years you guys can meet up again if you want to." Orochimaru said sadly as he did not want to tear the boy away from love but he had a lot of time to make up for it and chances would arise for the two if it was true love.

"Very well. I will go with you Father but we should probably get back to explain the situation like I promised." Orochimaru nodded and the two took off together and raced back to the hotel.

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The sun was coming up and the remnants of team eight were starting to become deathly afraid of all the horrible things that Orochimaru might be doing to Naruto. After all they had been gone for several hours and all of them were on edge. Shino was the first to notice the rapidly approaching pair thanks to his bugs.

"I believe we have company." Shino said with a hint of hope in his voice. His bugs had reported that Naruto was on his way back but his chakra network was acting up. His normally blue chakra had small tinges of purple corrupted chakra in it. This worried Shino but he decided he would let Naruto explain things before he brought it up.

Hearing Shino mention the possibility of people coming in Hinata activated her Byakugan and applied chakra to it and enhanced her vision. She focused in the direction Shino mentioned and saw two approaching figures and one of them was indeed Naruto! The girl let out an involuntary 'eep' and started blushing almost immediately.

Kurenai seeing Hinata act this way closed her eyes and sent out a pulse of Chakra in a sonar like fashion to sense for the signatures. There they were. Two people heading this way and one of them was Naruto's signature.

As a group they all tensed when they sensed Orochimaru's chakra signature. It was corrupted and tainted but most of all powerful and focused chakra. The group waited with bated breath as Naruto and Orochimaru approached.

(Several minutes later)

Naruto landed first and Orochimaru landed behind him letting his Son do what he had to do before he left. Naruto decided he would break it to them easy and try not to hurt everyone so much in the process so he had Orochimaru cast a high level genjutsu on him that even Kurenai could not see through. This jutsu made him look and feel just like he did before the previous jutsu was released on him. Hinata was the first to dash over and give him a big hug while kissing him on the cheek and blushing the whole time. Shino simply nodded and Kurenai let out a small breath of relief as Naruto appeared to be unharmed.

"Naruto! Thank Kami you are alive! I thought the worse may have happened to you!" Hinata screeched and caused Orochimaru to snicker quietly behind his hand.

"Indeed Naruto. It is most interesting to see you returned and unharmed. I am grateful for this." Shino said while nodding to Naruto once more.

"I'm glad to see that everything is in order Naruto." Kurenai said sharply before glaring at Orochimaru.

"I'm fine guys I promise. In fact I am feeling better than ever!" Naruto spoke with fervor and Kurenai wondered what exactly he meant by this.

"In fact there is something I need to show and tell you guys. Kai!" Naruto spoke and soon the genjutsu began to wavier. As it was slowly wavering Naruto spoke.

"I have learned all of history. Everything that was hidden from me." At this point Naruto's hair began to change and the groups eyes began to widen "I am the container for the demon fox called the Kyuubi. The strongest of them and that's why I am hated in the village. For the burden I carry inside of me." The dispelling was going from top to bottom so slowly his head began to lose color and his eyes began to change "I also learned of the true history I have. I have a family and He was looking hard to find me after my mother….Died." At this point his eyes changed and the under markings came back up "My Father was hated simply because of his love for his one and only. His precious person. The whole of Konoha was unable to accept that he might turn over a new leaf and be happy. They just could not handle it." By the end of his speech his voice was pure ice with nothing but hate and resentment in it. Also by this point his transformation was complete and before them stood the true Naruto. "My Mother was the Yondaime. My Father is Orochimaru." At this statement all the members even Shino stood there with their jaws scrapping the floor and their eyes threatening to bulge out of their heads. Naruto closed his eyes and untied his headband and held it in his hand. "Furthermore I will be joining my Father in his village and work my way to being leader of that village instead. I refuse to lead something that hates me for being it's savior. I am turning in my head band now and accept the role of missing Nin in Konoha's Bingo Book." Shino was shocked. Kurenai was utterly stunned. Hinata was heartbroken. They boy of her dreams was leaving and willing going to betray the village.

"B-b-b-but N-Naruto. W-What a-a-about m-me? D-don't y-y-you c-c-c-c-care?" Hinata was speaking through heavy sobs. She felt her heart cracking and crumbling as she returned to feeling like her shy little self again. Naruto walked up and gave her a hug. He kissed her gently before handing her his Head band and whispered into her ear.

"Never forget. I will never forget you Hinata. I want you to do me a favor. Take on my dream. Become Hokage and Unite the Main and Branch families with that power. Our villages could be good friends. And remember this." He kissed her cheek "I love you." Hinata closed her eyes and shook silently. When she opened them again Orochimaru and Naruto were gone without so much as a single trail. Hinata looked down at the head band and wiped the tears off of it. She tied it onto her own forehead and smiled with new determination.  
_  
'I will do it Naruto-kun! I will become the greatest Hokage ever for you! I-I love you!'_

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(The Next Day in Oto)

Naruto woke up after a stressful night in a comfortable bed in a dark candle lit room. He pulled away the covers and swung his legs out to connect with the floor. His heart was in pieces after seeing the look on Hinata's face at his words that he was leaving. Naruto shook his head an noticed he only had on his underwear. Looking around he spotted a set of folded cloths. He walked over to them and got them on without too much of a problem. His feet were in black shinobi sandals and his ankles up to his mid-calf were wrapped in bandages. He had on black plain pants. He had on a black long sleeve undershirt. Over this was a shirt with increased length that went down to his thighs (Think of Orochimaru's tan over shirt for this) was purple with the Kanji for "Serpent" on the back and front. Around his waist was the purple rope that all sound members had. He tied on the bow and walked over to the mirror in his room and looked in it. He looked up and down at his new outfit and smiled. The whisker marks added a lot of animal-ness to his look that he liked. It went well with him. Turning to head out the door he wondered what exactly his Father had in store for him today. The moment he opened his door there was a guy with silver hair and glasses stood before him.

"Ah apologies Naruto-sama. Orochimaru-sama wishes to see you when you are ready. Also he wants you to have this. When you are ready I will escort you to him. This place can be confusing for a bit." Kabuto spoke as he handed him a Sound village Head band. Naruto took it and strapped it to his fore head. Naruto smiled then looked back at Kabuto.

"May I know your name?" Naruto asked the silver haired man who just smirked at him and pushed up his glasses so that they touched up with his nose bridge.

"My name is Kabuto. Are you ready to go Naruto-sama?" Naruto just nodded and soon the two were off.

Kabuto was right when he said the place was hard to get around in Orochimaru's underground lair. The place was barely lit and everything looked exactly the same as the hallway before. Thank kami Kabuto was there who just seemed to effortlessly drift through the hallways like he has lived here his entire life. After roughly ten minutes of traveling they reached the exit. Kabuto pushed open the door and their eyes were attacked by the light of the sun. Naruto had to squint his eyes until they adjusted. Kabuto just smirked and kept moving. Naruto followed right behind him once his eyes adjusted. Kabuto led him through the town were Naruto was on edge the entire time. Naruto was expecting the hateful glares and colorful comments from the villagers but instead all he got were smiles and bows as he walked past them. At one point a little girl dropped an apple and in rolled in front of Naruto. He stopped and picked it up and dusted it off. He extended his arm to give it back and the little girl bowed to him and took it back with a smile. She…..bowed….to…..him. Naruto was in pure shocked. No one had ever showed him any hint of respect in his life and if they did it was always out of pity. Naruto continued his walk until he got to a large tower. This tower was no bigger than some of the other buildings but the fact it was on a hill made it seem much larger than it was. Kabuto waved bye to Naruto saying he had something he had to do for Orochimaru. Naruto waved back and walked up to the Tower while two guards were talking.

"Hey did you hear? Orochimaru-sama's son was found and brought here." Guard one said.

"Yeah who hasn't heard about that? I bet the kid is gunna be a brat." Guard two said.

"What makes you think that?" Guard one asked.

"If you were the son of a Kage wouldn't you act like that? Guard two tried to convince his friend to see his point of view.

Naruto walked up between the two and coughed semi-loudly.

"Ah sorry Naruto-sama!" The guards said in unison and moved so that he could pass in between them. As Naruto climbed the stairs he could hear the two argue about how they were going to be killed for insulting his son. Am I really that important? Naruto thought as he remembered how everyone was being very nice and smiling at him. Certainly not the way Naruto thought it was going to go. As Naruto got to the top he could hear five voices inside the office. Taking in a breath he put his hand on the door and pushed it open and was met by five figures with him only noticing and recognizing Orochimaru. Orochimaru just smiled and walked over and put his hand on his shoulder.

"This is my Son. The very person we were just talking. Say hello Naruto." Orochimaru said with a tone the other four members have never heard before. It was almost warm and caring. They had only ever seen him cold and calculating.

"H-Hello, I'm Naruto." Naruto cursed himself for being shy around the four.

"Allow me to introduce them to you Naruto. This here is Sakon with his brother Ukon." The two mentioned people both bowed in unison and said hello. "This is Kidomaru." Orochimaru said and pointed to the spider like ninja. Who bowed and smirked as he greeted Naruto. "This is Jirobo." The aforementioned big guy bowed and greeted Naruto respectfully much to Naruto's surprise. Orochimaru grinned. "And this girl is Tayuya" She bowed and mumbled a greeting that surprisingly had no curse words in them.

"Well that is all of them. I am sorry Naruto but I have things I have to do. You four will escort him around the village and show him the sights. Make him feel welcome. I have to go deal with a couple of guards for their rude manners. Naruto meet me here first thing tomorrow morning okay?" Naruto just nodded and Orochimaru turned and left the room. Naruto turned and looked over each of the members. The first person was more like two people in one with grey hair and lipstick. The next was just a spider ninja if he had to guess. Six arms and a weird vibe about him. Jirobo was a plump ninja with a burley added mass. Probably relied on brute strength to get things done. He seemed nice enough and would be a good first friend. The last member of the team was a girl with beautiful long red hair held in by a cap with bandages. She had on a tan shirt with the purple bow holding it in place. Underneath that was black shorts that went about mid-thigh. She had on black shinobi sandals and bandages like him. She had a flute on the side of her outfit. Naruto looked into her eyes and saw a sadness only a few people like him knew and only a few could understand. In a moment those eyes changed from their sorrow to mock anger. Her voice, even though was filled with roughness, was actually quite sweet and flowed quite nicely from her lip. If only she could keep control of those curses she liked to mutter so much. Tayuya turned towards Naruto and instantly scowled as she looked at him. She actually looked to be upset about something though what about Naruto would never be able to tell. He just kinda looked at her and returned the glare. Not in a bad way but at least enough to show that he was not about to roll over and let anyone walk over him. Then she spoke.

"What the fuck are you looking at?!" 


	7. Chapter 7: Down a dark path

**Chapter 7: Down a dark path**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Summary: Naruto travels the town and takes his first Oto mission. Meanwhile Konoha copes with the loss.

A/N: Thank you to all my loyal readers for reading this far. I certainly didn't expect my first story to go this well so thank you. As always if you enjoy the chapter and/or story please review. Let's me know you care ** With that being said on with chapter seven!  
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"What the fuck are you looking at?!"

Naruto was a tad shocked to say the least. All day people have been respecting him and treating him with kindness. He just got these two new affections and he was going to be damned if some foul mouthed red head ruined it. Narrowing his snake eyes he peered directly into her eyes without so much as blinking or looking away. Just focused on her.

Now Tayuya is not one to be scared easy as she would no doubt tell you over and over. But after being Orochimaru's personal guard for so long and seeing the things he could do to people tended to make you a bit fearful of the man. Then when his son gives you the exact same look as his father you can't help but to feel a little fearful of him. Even if he was two years younger than her.

"Tayuya it's not nice to speak to Naruto-sama like that. And you should not be using that language any way. It's not suiting of a lady." Jirobo spoke up and ended the little staring debate. Although the two seemed to hit it off rough the other members of the Sound Four found the scene hilarious. Here was the foul mouth ice queen of Oto being scared of some little kid.

"Ha! Good one Naruto! I haven't seen Tayuya that scared in a long time!" Kidomaru said while holding his sides laughing. Sakon and Ukon joined in on the laughter while Jirobo just sighed. Tayuya on the other hand was turning red from embarrassment of the situation.

"Shut the fuck up! I was not fucking scared!" Tayuya tried to reaffirm herself even though she knew that she was. Odd thing was that Tayuya liked being scared by people who have power and can command others. It's what drew her to Orochimaru in the first place. She would never admit it but underneath it all. She liked to be controlled and her loud personality was simply a front to hide this intention.

"It's okay Tayuya. I was a bit scared too." Naruto spoke with kindness which shocked everyone in attendance except Jirobo. Sure the big guy could be mean and nasty but he most defiantly had a soft spot and a kind soul when he needed it. The rest of the group stopped laughing and looked at the kid like he was crazy. Why on Earth would he be so nice? It would do him little to no good here but he will figure that out soon enough. Either way the group had a mission to do and really did not feel like betraying their master in this regard.

"Well Naruto-sama we do have a village to explore so let's get to it." Sakon said while opening the door for him to pass through. Naruto walked through and down the stairs followed by the Sound Four.

Once outside they began their walk around to see what the place was. This place had advanced fast from the little town a little over a year ago. You see Orochimaru sold a lot of things in the castle to pay for things that the village needed. Food, water, tools and building material. Orochimaru then hired many builders and put them to work throughout the town. The now refurnished town had a style of building that showed that they went through hardships. Most of the buildings had sturdy and rough walls that looked like they could stand for ever and never have a problem. The roofs where plain wood that allowed for water to slip into the gutters and into the water supply to be cleaned for later use. A device Orochimaru picked up from his travels in Ame. Despite the rough appearance many buildings had designs on them to show their individuality and uniqueness, much like the people themselves. Naruto was in awe at the buildings. The buildings in Konoha all looked similar to show that they were a unified peoples. These buildings show cased how unique and special each person could be. Naruto fell in love with the city real quick. Naruto even liked the people better here. Not because they kissed his sandals wherever he went but because these people know what it was like to be truly down and crushed and rose above that and conquered their own hate to work together. The stores that were in Oto were very spread out and varied. Some were the basics such as restaurants and ninja stores. While others had things Naruto never seen before like a tattoo shop and a strip club. Jirobo told Naruto he should stay away from there seeing as how gentlemen do go to such places. Sakon and Kidomaru just laughed and Tayuya said she would cut Naruto's manhood off if she ever caught him there. Not that she cared about him or anything!

Anyways eventually the group decided that it would be nice to stop and get something to eat seeing as how they have been out and about for a little over two hours now and the fact Naruto kept complaining that he hasn't eaten in ages. They stopped at a popular barbeque joint that was growing in customers fast. Sitting down they all got their menus. Sakon and Ukon sat across from each other, Kidomaru and Jirobo sat across from each other and Naruto and Tayuya sat across from each other. The waitress came up and bowed to them. How lucky was she that she got to take the food order for the Sound Four! But who is this in the back with Tayuya? He looks just like…..Oh! That must be Orochimaru's son!

"Good evening honored guests. What can I get you to drink?" (Not)surprisingly the group ordered water except for Jirobo who ordered tea instead. While they waited the Sound Four decided to learn a bit about their charge.

"So Naruto, how do you like the Village this far?" Kidomaru asked while sipping his water and letting his five remaining arms just dangle.

"Well…I like that it makes unique people feel welcome and 'normal' people feel unwelcome. Konoha was far too bland for me in that regard."

"Speaking of Konoha. What was that place like?" Kidomaru asked with slight curiosity

"It's like one big unified family. Always looking out for each other and always caring. If you were accepted by the general population. If you were like me then you are hated at every turn and beaten every chance they got." Naruto said with a slight disappointment in his voice.

"Well I know what it's like to be considered a freak." Sakon and Ukon said earning a nod from Kidomaru.

"Kinda hard to have six arms and live a normal life yanno?" Kidomaru responded.

"Well I know how I got here with Orochimaru but how did you guys get here?"

This caused a slight break in the conversation with each of them looking around like they didn't want to answer but they all decided to anyway. With Sakon and Ukon leading the way.

"Well you see my clan had a fight over their Kekkei Genkai. The very same one that me and Ukon use. The ability to merge bodies on a cellular level was quite the gift for those who wanted to do stealth instead of brute force. This made our clan very popular for stealth missions as we could hide in other people's bodies and sneak in or over hears conversation. Well with that pride came arrogance. Eventually the clan literally tore itself apart from the inside out. Me and Ukon here didn't see the point so we fled before the actual battle happened. When we fled we ran into Orochimaru. He offer me a chance to join him and have a purpose again so I accepted the offer and came here. End of story." Sakon said with no amount of sorrow in his voice at all. Ukon just nodded with his twin. Kidomaru was the next to speak up.

"Well I had a similar situation to ole two-bodies over there" He said pointing at Sakon and Ukon who frowned "Having six arms like I do tends to make you stand out in a crowd and in some cases even hated. I remember I use to try to fit in with normal people only for them to hate me too. So I said to hell with them and I left my village. I traveled around for a bit. Gambled, drank, met some pretty women and showed them good times. All in all I was letting my talents go to waste. Until Orochimaru-sama found me and offered me a chance to hone my skills and not be hated for them. To be embraced as a good shinobi and not just a creep. I took the offer and voila! Here I am!" Kidomaru said as he held up his arms in mock praise of himself. Jirobo shook his head and decided it was his turn to explain his story.

"Don't let Kidomaru fool you. He didn't really sleep with any women. They all beat him down. Right Tayuya?" Said red head turned and was about to tell her fat teammate off when the waitress came back. She asked what she could get everyone to eat. Sakon and Ukon said a slab of rips each. Kidomaru said a salad. Jirobo said two slabs of ribs. Naruto and Tayuya both looked over the menu until they got to the noodle section. Once there both of their eyes widen as they slammed down their menus and said in unison.

"Beef Ramen!"

Several moments went by after the two stated their orders. Both of them sat back in their seats and crossed their arms while glaring at each other. It wasn't until the waitress left that Tayuya spoke up.

"Why the fuck did you order the same thing as me?!"

"Because I like Ramen! You got a problem with that?" Naruto proudly proclaimed defending the food of the gods.

"You could have picked a different fucking type asshole!" Tayuya fired back.

"I don't see how this is my fault! What crawled up your ass and died?!"

Tayuya's face turned a slight tinge of red as she got a bit more angry and frustrated. "Because a "Gentleman" as fat ass over there puts it lets a women go first!"

Naruto simply snorted and refused to say anything else. Jirobo took this time to shake his head and tell his story.

"Well while we wait for the food to come I may as well tell my story. I was a wrestler in a place called 'The Pit'. This was not a nice place at all. People were mean and cruel to each other. The only way to get food to eat was to win your fights that your owner put you up against. My owners name was a short man by the name of Gato. He was a cruel little man but he did teach me about how to have certain manners and how to keep calm at times. Anyway I had a record of over one hundred fights with no losses. This was due to the fact that I knew how to control chakra to make myself stronger. In the pit anything goes. It wasn't until I was defeated that I met Orochimaru. I was depressed that I had lost but he told me that I could win again if I came with him and helped him and now. Now I am here with you guys. And I am happy with that." Jirobo finished right as the food arrived. He dug in instantly while Sakon and Ukon seemed to enjoy their meals more. Kidomaru was enjoying his salad when he heard a lot of slurping noises coming from the end of the table. It was Naruto and Tayuya as they were in a heated race to see who could finish their ramen quicker. Caution was thrown to the wind as the two guzzled down the salty soup. After almost a minute of attacking the two they both set their bowls down at the same time.

"Done!"

"Ah damn it you little fucking runt!"

"I am almost as tall as you!"

"Shut the fuck up!"

"Make me!"

Ah poor Naruto. Twas the wrong thing to say to an enraged Tayuya who took prompt action by lunging across the table and on to the former blonde leaf shinobi. They tumbled and rolled on out of the store and finally stopped in the middle of the road in a rather awkward position. Tayuya was on top of Naruto as she straddled him at his waist line with her legs on either side of him and pinning his arms back to the sides of his head. Once Tayuya got over her anger she noticed the position she was in with him and instantly got off of him with a blush threatening to make itself known.

"Woooo Naruto! You work fast my man! I have been trying to get her on top of me for a year now!" Kidomaru said with a grin quickly earning him a heavy haymaker from Tayuya who just grumbled about annoying spiders and their sex drives. Jirobo was about to say something when Kabuto showed up.

"Ah Naruto-sama enjoying the city thus far? And the "company"?" Kabuto asked while flicking his glance over to Tayuya who just snorted and blushed slightly.

Naruto got up and dusted himself off and nodded ever so slightly.

"Good. Orochimaru-sama wishes to see you as soon as you can make your way there. I would suggest you go now that you are free from lunch. He is back in the tower that I showed you to earlier." With that Kabuto turned and walked away from the group. Naruto sheepishly rubbed the back of his head and said he would catch up with them after talking with his dad. The group nodded except for Tayuya who simply said "Fuck. You." Naruto shook his head and took off back to the tower.

The group watched as Naruto left and took off towards the tower to talk with Orochimaru. Kidomaru came back and decided to bring something up.

"You like him don't you?" Kidomaru said with a grin.

Tayuya turned a light shade off pink from embarrassment "How the fuck do you figure? I only just fucking met the guy!"

"You didn't react like that when you were introduced to the rest of us. Hell I do not ever remember being able to make you that mad in the first day. "

"Fuck you Kidomaru."

"Ehh maybe another time babydoll. I got things to do." With that the spider ninja walked off towards the inner city. Sakon, Ukon, and Jirobo all made up different excuses and left her in the street alone. Tayuya looked off in the direction of the Tower blushing before hopping away to practice her flute skills and melody.

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Naruto quickly made pace through the town and in the direction of the tower all the while having some new thoughts.

_'I have a father now. They may not be my friends now but they will be! The Sound Four will be my friends! I wonder what dad wants now? Is it a mission? Maybe some cool jutsu! Maybe a pet snake! YA!'_

Naruto dashed into the tower and quickly made his way to the top. Once there he politely knocked on the door and heard Orochimaru tell him to enter. Once in there Naruto saw a scroll on the desk. The only thing on the desk was the scroll. Naruto began to become excited.

"Hello Father. You asked for me to come here"

"Yes I did Naruto. In fact I did for a good reason. Me and you are going on a mission together. Just us. This way I can show you how I will be training you and what styles and jutsu you will learn with time."

At this Naruto shot up and down with happiness! He got to go on a mission with his dad to learn how to fight the Snake Sannin Style way!

"Calm down Naruto. We leave in roughly an hour so go get ready and meet me outside the tower then."

(One Hour Later)

"Ah Naruto there you are. Are you ready?" Earning a nod from Naruto "Good. This would be classed as a C-rank but it is a personal thing to me. We are going to raid a building that is hiding someone who would rather see me dead. We are going to go there and stop him. Okay?" Earning another nod from Naruto the two took off in the direction of the town with the traitor. On his way Naruto couldn't help but to think.

_'I wonder what Hinata is doing right about now.'_

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Hinata, who had just woken up delivered a powerful sneeze into her pillow as she felt it come on out of nowhere. Hinata looked around and noticed that she had fallen asleep for a long time after the emotional toll Naruto laid on her. She did not blame him of course. He was just fulfilling his dream with his new found family. Hinata would have done the same thing if she was in his shoes. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and got up from her bed. Kurenai noticed she was having a rough night so she let Hinata have the bed. Hinata was of course grateful but she didn't get much sleep that night until her mind had been overloaded and forced her to shut down. Walking out of the room in her normal shinobi attire she was greeted with the streaking rays of sun light that indicated it was late in the afternoon. Kurenai and Shino were there all packed up and ready to head out. Hinata got there stuff packed and left without so much as one word.

It had hit them all rather hard, Naruto's defection. But for Hinata it felt as though a piece of her soul had been ripped apart from her. She tried to think of every possible reason he would leave and settled on the one she told herself now a hundred times_. 'He is just doing it to accomplish his dream.' _It helped to calm her down but you don't get over something like that in one night. With haste the trio managed to make it back in record time. Hinata told Kurenai she wanted to go home to her family and Kurenai said she would be back later to give Hinata the mission money. Hinata nodded and left. Determined to get home.

Once home Hinata ran instantly into Hiashi who was waiting to her how her first C-ranked mission went and all the little details that came with. Once he saw the state his daughter was in he took her to his study and the two sat down.

"What is troubling you daughter?"

"So much father I don't even know where to start."

"Please start at the beginning of this problem."

"O-Okay. W-well we had j-just left for the mission a-and…" Hinata went on to explain to her father all of the details of the mission. Starting with how they arrived and the man showed them around and explained the situation around the ANBU killing off the guards one by one. Then she went on to tell them how they went through the steps of searching and tracking as a team. Then she grudgingly explained how they combated the criminal. She conveniently left out her part of getting strangled as to not worry her father. Then the tears started to fall as she spoke through sobs about how Naruto met his father and the real reason for the village treating him like dirt.

"…..*sob* Then h-h-he gave me h-his headband *sob* and l-l-l-left." Hinata broke down fully into tears again over the incident revolving around her best friend and her love.

Hiashi's face during her re-telling of the story was a jumble of mixed emotions ranging from proud to happy then sad then confused. Finally it went from embarrassed to straight up shock. Naruto willingly left the village? Fully aware of all the consequences that follow such a decision? Hiashi was beyond stunned. He felt a great deal of sadness as he had come to care for the boy like his own child.

"Hinata I'm sorry. I know how much he meant to us. Especially you. I can't imagine the type of pain you are going through after losing his. I wish there was more I could do to ease the pain in your heart but other than training I can't do much more." Hiashi spoke with a tone that had an underline of depression in it. Hinata wiped the tears from her eyes and looked into her father's eyes with a fire that could not be matched or subdued no matter how hard one may try.

"I a-am g-going to t-train harder father. Ill n-need your h-help there if I am t-to be H-Hokage one d-day." To say Hiashi was surprised would be like saying Naruto only liked ramen a little bit. He was surprised at his eldest Daughter's newfound pride and determination and ambition.

_'To be Hokage was Naruto's dream. She must have picked it up for him when he left the village. Well my daughter asked for my help training so I am going to train her to be the best Hyuuga I can!'_

"Very well Hinata I will train you to the best of my ability. But are you sure you really want to be Hokage?"

Hinata smiled and copied a two word phrase that her old friend used to say.

"Believe it!"

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A few hours later Kurenai shows up at the Hyuuga residence as she promised with a boy in tow. This boy has on a grey jacket with fur lining the hood. He has to red face markings that symbolize the clan he is from. Walking beside the boy is a little white dog.

Kurenai gets to the guards and asks for Hinata to come out to receive her money and introduce her to her new teammate. Once Hinata comes out Kurenai is a bit shocked to say the least. Hinata is wearing her normal blue shinobi pants but the old tan jacket she used to wear is now a vibrant and bright colored orange. Kurenai gave her a sad but happy look.

"H-hello Kurenai-sensei, H-hi Kiba."

"Oh good you two already know each other. He is going to be Naruto's repla- Substitute for Team Eight. He's got a good nose plus Akamaru is with him and he has a better nose." Kurenai caught herself as she knew the feelings Hinata had for Naruto was still blazingly strong. Kiba grinned a toothy grin and proudly proclaimed his new position.

"Yeah! I'm gunna replace that traitor!" this statement earned Kiba the death glares of a lifetime for just mentioning his name in such a manner. Kiba sheepishly lost his grin and remained quiet for the rest of the conversation. The rest of the day went without a hitch as Hinata and Hiashi trained and trained so that Hinata could succeed in her dream and become a stronger person in the process. Hinata had but one thought before she went off to sleep.

_'Naruto-kun…..I hope you are safe.'_

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Naruto and Orochimaru stopped at the edge of the tree line in which they were traveling in when Naruto let out a sneeze albeit a quiet one. Shaking his head he focused on the objective at hand. In front of him roughly a football field length away was the building of target. It was a square twenty story apartment building with three guards on the roof and several on the floor doing constant sweeps of the area. There was no way to tell how many there were inside of the building or where this traitor was at. From the way Orochimaru explained it, it would be safe to assume he would be at the top floor. Plus they were under the cover of a night fall with no moon present. Making their job much more easy in terms of stealth.

"So Naruto what do you see?"

"I see three roof guards. Ten ground guards on constant sweeps. If this man is as arrogant as you say then the best way to go about this would be through the roof seeing as how he is most likely on the top floor of the complex." Naruto carefully dissected the situation at hand.

"Very good Naruto. That's the way we shall go then." Orochimaru calmly but proudly stated as the two jumped off of the branch they were standing on. Applying chakra to their legs they dashed through the open plane while Orochimaru casted a cloaking genjutsu to hide them from sight. The speedily dashed through the plain and up the side of the wall of the building. They slowed down and carefully snuck up to the top. Two guards have moved to cover the door. No doubt some type of sensor went off to alert them of the intruder's presence. One guard was still making his rounds. Orochimaru held up his hand in a closed fist and they stopped. Orochimaru waited till the guard was close and put his plan into action.

Drawing a kunai he quickly jumped up and grabbed the guard and pierced his heart with the knife. Blood gushed out of the wound and the man was dead. Orochimaru let him drop unceremoniously to the ground and dashed over to the other two guards. He quickly brought the kunai across the first guard's throat and threw him down. He tossed the kunai at the second guard who was running. The kunai lodged itself in the back of the guards head and he fell over instantly, dead before he hit the ground. Orochimaru whistled and Naruto came up to see the blood filled scene. His stomach was in knots upon seeing so much blood but he knew what he had to do. He made his way quickly over to the door that lead downstairs to where Orochimaru was at. The two carefully opened the door and went inside. There was loud music and people cheering. The arrogant prick was having a party! Naruto quickly scanned the area with his hearing and found the room that was most quiet compared to the rest. Pointing at a door at the end of a long hallway with wooden floors and several paintings on several doors. Orochimaru nodded and slithered over to the door motioning to Naruto that it was all clear. Naruto looked at the door and looked upon a poster with the man on it. This man was a fatter man in a business suit that looked like it barely fit him. He had greasy slicked back hair and a pair of sunglasses on. He was smiling a bent smile that showed he had several golden teeth. At the bottom it said "Down with the Snake, Up with Kormoto!" Naruto shook his head and Orochimaru unlocked the door slowly.

The fat pig was seating on a sofa with a parade of naked women of all kinds dancing for him. None of them seemed to actually enjoy the attention he was giving them. Some of the girls moved and Naruto saw a girl on her knees in front of Kormoto and he seemed to be having a pained expression? Naruto could not tell as this was the first time he had seen anything like this. He blushed at the scene and followed Orochimaru.

"So Kormoto. This is how you choose to live your last few minutes? Wallowing in this?" Orochimaru pointed towards the women with a frown on his face. At the moment Orochimaru spoke the other women did their best to cover themselves up and they dashed out of the private room. Kormoto zipped up his pants and lazily stood up. He was shorter than Orochimaru by at least a foot. Naruto was almost on point with the man and he was twelve!

"What the hell do you want?" Kormoto asked brashly. His voice sounded strained like he had been chain smoking for most of his life and was raspy as the result.

"I am here to make you a symbol of all who dare to mess with me." With that Orochimaru quickly dashed and brought his Kusanagi across the man's knees causing them to buckle and wavier. Keep the momentum he quickly spun around and slashed his ankle's Achilles heel causing his to lose mobility from his legs. Kormoto yelped out in pain as he fell to the ground and had to use his arms to keep himself up on his knees. By this time Kormoto was sweating and Naruto was shocked that any person could move that fast with that kind of grace. Orochimaru looked up to Naruto and gently handed him the hilt of his sword.

"Naruto if you would please do the honor."

Naruto gingerly took the handle of the sword but was shaking quite fiercely. Naruto had never killed before without the Fox's help unknowingly. His heart rate pulsed and his breath became ragged and unsteady. He swallowed hard as he looked down at the man and Naruto swore he could hear his heartbeat pulse in the fat man's body. Naruto brought the sword up, shaking violently as he did it and the fat man looked up at him pleadingly.

"Please don't….don't do this. I'll pay you whatever you want. Please just let me live!" Kormoto pleaded with Naruto who seemed to falter a bit as he was raising the sword. Naruto looked down at him. His eyes must have been playing tricks on his because he suddenly morphed into one of the villagers that used to beat on him when he was a kid. Naruto became cold at this sight.

"This is for betraying my father." Naruto's eyes turned steel hard and his shaking seemed to stop. Kormoto's eyes widen and he started screaming for his life. Naruto closed his eyes and brought the sword down in one swoop. Blood shot out and landed on Naruto's face. Silence…there was no more screaming. Only the sound of a severed head rolling off of its host body. Naruto stabbed the blade into the ground and used it for support. He had done it. He had killed someone and taken their life and it felt kinda good to take out some of his pent up rage on a person and do what he envisioned in his head so many times before. Orochimaru smiled and took the sword and re-sheathed it to its proper place.

"Good job Naruto and congratulations on your first kill. How do you feel?"

"I feel better. It felt good to release some of that pent up anger for once." Orochimaru smiled and the two took off back to home.

Naruto was shaking most of the time still not coming down from that high he had from killing his first person. It wasn't until he got back to the village that he finally relaxed a bit. A small smile formed on his face before he went to bed that night.

_'That was…fun.'_ Naruto thought as he closed his eyes for sleep.

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	8. Chapter 8: Training

**Chapter 8: Following the steps**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Summary: Naruto follows in his father's steps, Hinata forges her own way, A certain raven haired boy changes for the better.

A/N: Holy smokes thank you to all who viewed and reviewed and such! Means a lot to me as a writer to know that you guys support me. I will do my best to keep you involved with the story! Sorry if it took me awhile to get this chapter up. I had a lot of things to set up for this one as this chapter has several hints as to the future three. With that off to another chapter!  
  
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Naruto awoke in a most unusual fashion. He had a massive smile plastered on his lips. He closed his eyes to recall the previous day's accounts. He had gone on a mission with his Father to stop some arrogant man from slandering his family's name. More importantly he had earned his first kill. It was scary but exciting for the boy. It made his heart pound like never before. Not only that but he had earned his own Father's respect and pride at that moment. It was truly something to admire for the boy. Naruto would never forget this day as it was the turning point for his dark journey to begin.

Naruto yawned and rolled out bed, his naturally long black hair fell perfectly into place without much effort at all. Naruto got dressed and headed to the tower. Of course, Kabuto was there to escort the boy much to his displeasure but there was nothing he could do about it. Orochimaru was beyond scary and Kabuto did not want to end up on the experimenting table.

So the two walked in complete silence and harmony. Kabuto briskly leading the way and Naruto following in perfect sync. Without any trouble at all the two found their way out into the newly lit city and basked in the beautiful sunlight. Naruto's eyes were once again blinded but adjust much more quickly this time then the previous night he was here.

The duo parted after Kabuto told him that Orochimaru had wished to speak with him the moment he awoke. Naruto nodded and dashed towards the tower in which his Father was at during this moment.

_'After last night I wonder what father could want from me. Is it to talk to see how much I have changed because of it? Maybe it is training? I have no clue but I hope it is something awesome!'_

After several minutes of traveling he finally arrived at the tower and waltzed inside like he owned the place. Well….he kinda did. Anyway Naruto rounded up the infamous swirling steps and eventually got to the door. I took in a breath and lightly knocked on the door.

"Come in Naruto." Orochimaru spoke with a small smile gracing his lips. He seemed to be doing that a lot now.

The door opened and Naruto walked through the door and bowed slightly before taking a seat in front of his father's desk.

"So Naruto how do you feel?"

"I feel better but….a little worried." Orochimaru raised a brow at this.

"Why worried?"

"Well….am I supposed to enjoy killing people? I did enjoy it but I don't know why it felt so right." Orochimaru smiled and nodded. He remembered what it was like when he took his first life. Doubts of all kinds ran through his mind and all types of mixed emotions swirled in his head.

"Well son that depends on you. Only true monsters can kill for nothing more than pure fun. I won't lie to you Naruto. The world is going to force you to kill people for all kinds of reasons. Do not try to fool yourself with that thought. Instead kill only when it calls for it. If your life is threatened or your way of life is threatened or something along those lines. Kill when you need to protect your goals. Kill to get revenge when you need it. But never do it for simply fun alone. That will brand you into a monster and my son is no monster."

Naruto looked down for a moment while he absorbed the words his father spoke. Naruto came to terms with it a made an internal vow to follow the example his Father set with those words. He looked back up.

"Thank you Father. That helps me out a lot."

"No problem Naruto. Now I believe someone has a dream of become Otokage am I right?"

Naruto nodded vigorously, Orochimaru chuckled.

"Well then we better get started on your training then right? But first we need to see if you can handle that training." Orochimaru opened his desk and pulled out a paper. It looked like the average every day paper but Naruto could tell something was different about it. Maybe his snake eyes were some kind of hidden dojutsu. Naruto mentally shook his head of this thought and looked at Orochimaru with a confused expression on his face.

"This is chakra paper Naruto. You put your finger on it and press chakra into it and it shows you the nature of the chakra you wield. If it is fire it will burn. Water it will turn soggy and wet. Lightning it will crumple up and wrinkle. Earth it will turn to dirt and Wind will cause it to split in two. So go ahead Naruto press some Chakra into the paper."

Naruto took a breath and placed his finger on the paper. Gently he pressed a little bit of chakra into the paper. The paper instantly became wet. Naruto formed a frown on his face and Orochimaru let out a victorious sigh.

"Aww man! I was hoping to get a cool element like lightning or fire!" Orochimaru looked confused for a second before letting out a small chuckle.

"Naruto this is a wonderful thing. You inherited my water affinity. This would explain part of your natural flexibility in combat and how well you move. That is the first part into inheriting everything I have to teach you and before you ask. No I am not going to tell you everything. Firstly though we need to get started on training your water skill." Orochimaru stood up and motioned for Naruto to follow him. Naruto did so until they arrived at a small training ground underneath the tower that had all five elements set up to train with.

"Alright son I am going to begin your training here. Elemental training is not the only kind we will do but for now that will have to wait. First thing is we need to get you used to water walking. I know you can already do tree-climbing. I saw it at the village. For now just go over to the water and walk on it."

Naruto carefully walked over to the water and tenderly put a foot on it. He smiled and put his other foot on it before he promptly shot off the water. He repeated this several times and kept going at it.

"This is going to take a while. But at least I don't have to do paperwork." Orochimaru sighed

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Hinata's bed was empty! Hanabi panicked and rushed all over the house searching for her sister. She was nowhere to be found! What's this? The sound of hands hitting a piece wood followed by grunts? Someone must be training thought Hanabi. Activating her eyes she looked around with her near perfect 360 degree eyesight. She looked into the training ground area an saw her sister training away. She relaxed and went out to meet her sister for the morning. Hanabi stealthily crept onto the training and noticed her sister did not have her dojutsu activated. Which made what happened next all the more inspiring.

"Hello imouto-chan. Why are you up so early?" Hanabi was beyond shocked. First her sister had noticed her and had yet to activate her clan ability then she managed to get through a whole sentence without stuttering.

"H-hi Hinata." Hanabi mentally cursed herself for picking up her sister's trait of stuttering. "What are you doing up so early?"

"I'm training for my dream!"

Hanabi looked slightly puzzled by this sudden proclamation. Seeing the confused look on her sister's face Hinata continued.

"My dream of becoming Hokage."

"But isn't that Naru-" One look from her old sister got her to stop her sentence right there in it's tracks. Hanabi swallowed hard and bowed quickly to leave her older sister to train. On the way out Hanabi pasted her father and cousin as they both headed out to the same training ground that Hinata was at. Hanabi was curious and stuck around. The three of them began intense Gentle Fist training and Dojutsu practice to strengthen the bloodline. Hanabi watched for a few minutes before leaving and getting her day at the Academy started.

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Over on the other side of the city was a now hollow Compound of a once proud family: The Uchiha. Sasuke was the last one other than his brother Itachi who had murdered all the members of his clan in one night and in one swoop leaving Sasuke with no one to cling to when the pain set in. This left the boy in loneliness but he refused to accept the path of hate. His brother had left him with the cryptic message of using his hate to grow stronger but Sasuke would have none of that.

Sasuke awoke in the middle of the night covered in sweat and tears. He had just been through another night of vicious nightmares and horrid visions of the future. Sasuke looked over to the clock.

_3:30am_

'Damn it. I still have three hours before I have to meet with the rest for our next mission.' He thought before looking back up at the ceiling. The next mission he was to go on was escorting some old man to his homeland in the Land of Waves. While he was looking forward to the trip he was certainly not looking forward to the annoying fan girl who no matter what seemed to cherish him at every turn. Sasuke could not remember how many times that he had told her off or rejected her to go on dates with her. But for some reason the Pink Death would never let him go! Sighing and seeing as how he wasn't going to be getting any sleep rolled over and out of bed. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and made his way downstairs of his house then over to the training ground. Sure it was a bit early to be training but he had to get better somehow right?

Once down at the training ground he began his normal physical exercise of running a few laps followed by some push-ups and sit ups then on to Taijutsu training followed by brief Ninjutsu training. It wasn't easy but it made him feel better and gave himself time to think about life.

As he was running he thought about how he was going to live his life. After this mission, other more difficult ones are bound to show up. More challenging people. He was going to need to be faster and stronger. Not to mention he was going to need his eyes. Sasuke sighed as he ran. He still had yet to awaken his family's Dojutsu and he was beginning to worry about it. He would need those eyes soon.

This thought caused Sasuke to mentally pause for a moment. Why exactly would he need those eyes? Sure to kill Itachi but what else? Surely he would exist after defeating Itachi but what would he do? Sasuke thought about it for a while and looked up at the now rising sun. It spread its loving warm embrace of the cold compound and brought light to the sleeping city of villagers. Sasuke stopped his run and looked over at the village. He didn't really have an opinion of the village quite yet. It was home sure but that was the extent of it. He did like the people though. They were friendly enough and kind to him during his time of mourning. He liked his team to an extent and didn't really want to see them hurt or killed. Sasuke resumed his run with his thoughts raging about in his skull. Then it hit him.

'_That's what I'll need the eyes for after Itachi. I'll need them to protect the people close to me. To help me break the cycle of hate I will need others that care for me. I will use my eyes to achieve this goal!' _With that the raven haired boy took off into his training with new energy.

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(Several Months Later)

_CLANG_

CLANG

CLANG

The sound of swords clashing off of each other echoed throughout the cavern sized underground training ground. Naruto and Orochimaru were in the process of training Naruto in the art of the Snake style Kenjutsu art. Naruto at first was a bit slow with the style but with practice and sparring the boy came into his own with the sword. Of course, this was not all they practiced on. Naruto had managed to get the water walking down after three weeks of trying and getting better control of his chakra in the process. Naruto also managed to learn a few Suiton jutsu in the process. They were hard to learn because to master the water element one had to be calm and for a hyperactive ninja this was without a doubt one of the harder things he had to learn in life. Although with a little help from his father he had managed something that would change how he was viewed forever.

(Flashback to six days ago)

Naruto opened the door to a laboratory of his fathers. Naruto had been in here once before but never noticed anything odd about it. Now he looked in the back and there was a massive skeleton of an enormous snake. Naruto knew his connection with snakes but he was wondering what was going on.

"Ah Naruto there you are." Orochimaru said with a small smile though Naruto could tell something was bothering his father greatly.

"You called for me Father? What is going on?" Naruto asked while raising his brow. Today was a weird one. His father had called off training for the day and asked to see him when he had eaten lunch for the day. It was rare for his father to give him days off at all let alone free time. Naruto enjoyed it before going back to lab mentioned before. Orochimaru said it was for the second stage of his curse seal. Naruto survived the first stage of the Cursed Seal of Heaven. The fox had made sure of that. Orochimaru left the slave binding seal and the pain out of the seal. He would never willingly put his son through that much pressure and pain. Instead this seal grew in strength the more it was used during negative actions. Instead of pain shooting through his body when negative emotions ran through his body his dopamine levels were increased to a mild high. Nothing damaging but enough to make him feel like releasing its power. Naruto was trained to resist the draw of the power so he would not become so reliant on it like the others have become. Like all Cursed Seals the more chakra you put into it the more power it gives the user. For Naruto this was a problem. He could pour so much chakra the seal would break and he would never have access to its Senjutsu power again. Instead Orochimaru developed a Chakra storage seal that could limit and store excess chakra allowing Naruto access to its power if he took the time to fill it up before a fight. If he did he could have no chakra and still activate the seal. Of course the chakra would drain three times as fast as the seal cannot limit itself in chakra usage. Orochimaru also left out the part of the seal that makes the person undyingly loyal to Orochimaru. He knew his son would not dare betray him. Naruto had asked why he would need a cursed seal in the first place. Orochimaru told him it was a gift for him in the future and when he learned its purpose he would thank him.

"Yes Naruto. Today you take on more of my legacy." At these words Naruto's snake eyes seemed to glow with a sickly green color.

"Really?!" Naruto became excited at the prospect of earning more of his Father's legacy. Orochimaru let a small chuckle go.

"Yes but like all my other legacy gifts this one will hurt. More than you thought possible." Naruto swallowed hard and noticed something slithering behind him. He turned around to see a large purple snake staring right at him with his glowing yellow eyes. Naruto jumped back in terror and let out a small gasp. The Snake seemed amused by his actions and chuckled a bit.

**"There is no need to fear me child. I am Manda. The Boss Summon of Snakes."** Manda spoke with his voice booming in the laboratory. Naruto seemed confused by this.

"Greeting Manda-sama. My Father speaks very highly of you. Am I to sign the same contract then?" Naruto spoke respectfully with the King of Snakes. Manda lowered his head.

**"If you can survive then yes. That skeleton over there. He is Kin to me. We were brothers until Father declared me the Boss. He left and I had not seen him since. He is involved in this."** Manda spoke with a hint of sadness in his voice. Naruto looked to Orochimaru who motioned him to lay down on the table.

"Naruto if you could remove your shirt so that I may see the seal on you." Naruto did so and the moment his stomach was visible the seal popped up. Orochimaru studied it and pointed to one of the triangles on the seal. He turned to Manda and spoke.

"There. We will go in through there. This is the weakest point on the seal and will make the easiest target." Manda nodded and began to build up chakra in the tip of his nose. Orochimaru handed Naruto the pills to activate the second stage of the Cursed Seal. Naruto took them and his body went into blinding pain before finally shutting down. This is what Orochimaru was waiting on. Once done he ran through and extremely long and complex series of hand seals that were impossible to follow without the Sharingan from the Uchiha. He placed his hand on his sons seal and said **"Tamashi no shiru ni hebi o koeru fokkusu no kokan bonzu (Snake Over Fox Replacement Bone to soul sealing)"**

Instantly Naruto's stomach glowed with a purple glow and Orochimaru felt his Charka drained at amazing speeds. This is when Kabuto and Manda helped out by lending Chakra. Suddenly there was a flash of purple and the Snake bones were gone and the seal on Naruto was glowing.

(Inside Naruto's Seal)

There was a set of massive Iron bars in the damp sewer of Naruto's seal. Naruto himself was laying up against one of the walls of the place due to the pills knocking him out cold. The Kyuubi on the other hand was wide awake and was trying to knock open the gate seeing as how the seal was incredibly weakened due to Orochimaru. The Kyuubi growled and launched another ball of chakra at the gate. Suddenly the gate blasted open! The Kyuubi roared in victory and lunged out of his cage and stormed down the halls to take over his body while he remained immobile.

(Outside)

Orochimaru, Kabuto and Manda watched in awe as red chakra exploded from the boy's body. Naruto was growing more feral by the second and the chakra tails were coming out more and more now. He was at four tails and he was surrounded by a dense chakra cloak.

(Inside the seal again)

The Kyuubi was just down the hall when he felt another presence in the seal. Impossible thought the Fox. Nothing could venture in here unless that was what Orochimaru was doing. The Kyuubi was interrupted by a loud hissing sound.

**"Grrrr Show yourself!"** The Kyuubi roared into the shadows.

**"Itsss time sssomeone put you in your place!"** said the shadows when suddenly a large snake as long as the Kyuubi when stretching lunged out and wrapped itself around the Fox.

**"Gah! Get off of me your blasted snake!"** The aforementioned snake simply squeezed harder and began to glow. The Kyuubi roared in pain as it felt itself being sucked into the large skeleton. A large flash exploded and lit up the hall ways of the damp landscape. Suddenly a loud thud was heard as something landed. Slithering back to the cage a Snake was seen. Well actually nine of them. One head in the center with the rest around the main head. The main head was also thicker and longer than the rest. This snake was a darker purple that Manda and was longer too. The Snake closed its eyes and the other eight snakes melted back into the main body. (Think of it going from Orochimaru's eight snake technique to one single snake like Manda. Naruto's Fox spirit melded with the body of the Snake to give the Snake life albeit forcefully. Naruto is now the host to the Nine Headed Snake Mankuos. He has the ability to shed skin like the other snakes. Ability to control its nine other heads at will. Still technically a Bijuu due to the Fox spirit.) The Massive dark purple snake with white spots along its back and a black under belly and pruple eyes followed by nine horns on its head slithered past Naruto and brought its massive purple chakra back under control. The Snake chuckled a bit an slithered into the cage and let the Iron doors shut. It coiled up and rested inside after such a long process of binding and stealing the life force from the fox.

(Outside the seal)

The group watched in awe as the massive and oppressive red Fox chakra was replaced by subtle dark purple chakra cloak. Soon the cloak receded into his body and the group noticed a few changes. For example, Naruto no longer had whisker marks. Instead now his blue eye under markings where now so dark purple they were nearly black but they could tell it was still purple. Naruto also had dark purple hair. Naruto also appeared to be way slimmer but still had muscle tone and his normal body length. Kabuto did a full medical scan and noticed that everything checked out just right. The second stage of the seal was implemented without a hitch despite the modifications to it. The Fox's chakra signature was gone and there was a new mysterious one. His psyche took little damage and he would recover in a few days with proper rest. Manda went over to his body and sniffed it. His eyes went wide.

**"Mankuos is in there and he is alive and much stronger due to that chakra he absorbed. He is much stronger than I but that is good. When I get to old to do this I am sure that Naruto with be too old to carry on and Mankuos can come and rule the Snakes after me."** Manda spoke with pride.

"Good then I guess everything works out. Naruto will surpass me and Mankuos will surpass you. We both get what we want. Speaking of which I hope you can speak to the White Snake Sage about Naruto and the Ryuchi cave?" Orochimaru asked with an uneasy silence filling the lab.

**"I will try but we both know that he is not one to take recommendations. You had better train him very well by that time."** Manda said with a bit of uneasiness at the notion.

"Speaking of Naruto-sama I believe he did survive the process Manda-sama. He should be allowed to sign the contract now." Kabuto spoke with a small grin. Kabuto had come to respect the kid for following in Father's footsteps. Kabuto had even helped him in his studies. Lending him information when he could. In Naruto Kabuto found a piece of himself he never knew he could find. Kabuto wasn't whole yet but with Naruto Kabuto felt like he could possibly find that answer.

Manda lifted his head looked at Kabuto **"You are right boy. I did promise him that. I cannot do that now however. The Summoner must be awake when the contract is signed. When he wakes up and is at full health then I will allow him to. I must return now. Farewell."**

Orochimaru looked at Naruto again and ordered Kabuto to carry him back to his room to let him rest. Kabuto gladly accepted and bowed before carrying Naruto back to his room.

(Flashback end)

Orochimaru held up his hand to signal them to stop the combat. Naruto nodded and put his sword away into its sheath. Orochimaru smiled noting that his skills remained the same after the transfer. Orochimaru of course informed his son of what exactly had happened and he was slightly happy. This meant that in a way the reason he was hated is now dead. Mankuos had yet to actually speak to Naruto but he knew that in time he would.

"Very good Naruto. I am impressed that after such a stressful operation your skills remain on par as before. Now we are going to go through a test. It is important that you tell me exactly how you feel during these moments."

Naruto jumped in the air with a big 'Yahoo!' and fist pumped. He loved being tested and if it was his father doing the testing then all the better.

"Activate your stage one of the Curse Seal." Naruto did as he was told and poured a small but steady stream of Chakra into the mark and the little flame like dots spread from the point on the back of his neck over his spine where the neck meets the shoulder. They spread upwards and onto his face and stopped just before the marks reached the second eye.

"How do you feel Naruto?" Orochimaru asked with concern.

"I feel fine. I can sense things a little bit better than before and I feel like I could move quicker. Nothing out of the norm when using this form. Though this time around I do feel a bit more flexible and not so animalistic."

Orochimaru nodded "Activate stage two."

Naruto nodded at his father and poured a larger amount of chakra into the mark and started the Stage two changes. The marks on his body grew and soon covered his whole body in a fire like glow. During this glow Naruto's eyes began to glow and his hair became a more vibrat purple unlike his normal hair which is just dark purple this one was a much lighter and shinier purple. His skin remained pale white without black dots but now his purple eye markings stretched down to the tip of his upper lip and along his arms were long purple markings like the ones under his eyes. Also his was now scaly with snake scales that look like that could take quite a beating. His body became more slender.

"How do you feel?" This was such a loaded question for Naruto. He felt much stronger but the pull to lose one's self to this power was much stronger. Naruto also noticed that he could now smell the pheromones in the air and he could see body heat with his now glowing eyes.

"I feel so much better Father. I feel the power coursing through my veins and it feels great! I can see body heat and smell almost everything in this room. This is an intense feeling father."

Orochimaru seemed to ponder his son's words. "Okay Naruto let go of the seal for now. We have other things to do at the moment. But for now wait here while I go check something at the tower."

Naruto nodded and his father left. Normally Naruto would need to do something to calm down due to his excitement about feeling so strong. Something just seemed to calm him down since the fox was gone. Naruto released the flow of chakra and reverted back to normal. He felt the adrenaline stop and notice instantly that he was a lot weaker that when he went into the form. To rest a bit Naruto sat down and closed his eyes for a second to rest.

(Naruto's Mindscape)

Naruto's eyes snapped open and he noticed he was in the same place that the Fox was before. Same dark and damp sewer looking place. Just as he left it. Only this time there was no giant fox behind the Iron bars. No there was something else. Something not so brash and brutal. Something much more subtle than the Fox. Naruto blinked and looked up at the giant iron bars and tilted his head slightly at the bars. Seemingly studying them. That's when a ominous voice rang out from the bars. It was quiet but defiantly powerful.

**"Hello Naruto."** The voice spoke. It was eerie but calm and focused.

"Hello? Who are you?" Naruto questioned and the voiced laughed but it was a low laugh.

**"I am the one that got rid of that Fox!"** Naruto listened carefully and heard the sound of something slithering up to the cage. Naruto just wasn't expecting it to be a giant snake that looked like it could swallow the Fox whole in just one bite.

"Oh! So you are Manda's brother then!" the large snake seemed to nod at this as he was happy his brother had not forgotten about him.

**"Yessssss I am. I am Mankuos, The Snake of Discord!"** The large snake proudly proclaimed as it slithered into the light. Revealing its massive features. He was most certainly a match for the Kyuubi now.

Naruto nodded "Well now that we met what exactly happens now?"

The snake seemed to assume a thinking pose before opening its mouth to speak.

**"I…..Don't Know!"** Naruto sweat dropped and the snake smiled.

"GAH! What do you mean you don't know?!"

**"Calm down runt! I have only been alive for six days now! I know as much as you do about this. I am only ssssssslowly absorbing the Kyuubi's knowledge on these thingsssss. Cut me sssssome sssslack."** Naruto calmed down a bit and realized that he was right.

**"Now return to the world. Your father approachessss ussss."** Mankuos said before booting Naruto back to the real world.

(Outside)

Orochimaru looked at the scene with interest as his sons eyes suddenly snapped open and he was mumbling something about skinning a snake. Orochimaru took this time to run through the hand seals and yell out **"Kuchiyose no jutsu!"**

There was a large plume of smoke and the boss summon of all snakes had arrived liked promised.

"Orochimaru why did you summon me aga- Oh wait never mind. I see now." Manda spoke while looking at Naruto yelling at seemingly no one.

"Kukukuku yes indeed. Quite the summoner Hmm? Naruto!"

Naruto snapped out of his stupor and promised to get him later as he bowed to Manda and the snake nodded his head.

**"Naruto you survived the operation and judging by your actions have successful brought my brother back to life. I am grateful for that and am here to offer you a summoning contract. There are a few things you should know before you accept this. One, not all snakes like to be summoned and if you do summon these snakes you had best have a good reason or a sacrifice to offer them. Two, not all snakes respect you just because you are the summoner. You will have to earn each of their respects. Third, at some point I would like for you to visit Ryuchi Cave, the home of the snakes, and meet the branch heads. Can you agree to this?" **Manda spoke with seriousness and sternness. Naruto nodded and the Boss Snake let the contract slide out of his mouth. Naruto cut his finger and wrote in his name flawlessly having had this process explained to him by his father. Manda bid his farewell and puffed away.

"Well son that is enough for today. You have the rest of the day off to relax. You have earned. Tomorrow we begin snake training." Naruto leaped into the air and danced his way out of the underground lair earning a chuckle from his father who went to another dark part of the cavern.

Once out he put his hands behind his head and plastered a huge grin on his face and strolled through his village. He helped a few people with their chores and helped a few genin from the Academy on some D-ranked missions. He stopped and had lunch at a ramen shop and was walking to a training ground to run through some basics when he heard a melody come out of nowhere. It was painfully sweet and beautiful. Something that only someone who has had everything ripped away could play. Using his hearing from the sound ninja training he honed in on the sound. After a few jumps and dashes he was there. And so was _she._

Tayuya was sitting on a branch and playing her flute. Naruto slowly walked up to the tree and sat down. Tayuya looked down at him and he looked up at her. No words needed to be said at that moment. Both knew the other had felt something like this. Tayuya played her song with more emotion and a tiny blush on her face and Naruto took a very blissful nap as he drifted off.

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**A/N: I will admit I am a little iffy on this chapter. I hope you all find it okay. The reason I did not focus on Hinata and Sasuke's training is I want to save a good deal of their development for a later purpose. I hope you all found the three hints in this. Also the three mentioned in the chapter will be stronger than normal canon but in no way will anyone be a god. Just stronger in new ways. The three new Sanin are born. Who is who? Also here is a future hint for all wondering about good ole Neji. Let's just say fate decided he should be something else. Anyway I hope you all enjoyed and please review. It really helps me out as a writer and lets me know you guys enjoy the story as well. Until next time! Ja Ne!**


	9. Chapter 9: Time To Put It To The Test

**Chapter 9: Time to put it to the test!**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Summary: Naruto puts his new skills to the test in training and on a new mission with the Sound Four and Orochimaru. How will this turn out? And what is this about an exam in a few weeks?

A/N: OH PRAISE YOU OH HOLY READERS FOR YOUR REVIEWS! It does my soul good to see such love. As such I will deliver unto thee a hint of the future! When leaf meets sounds not all of hearts wounds are healed. On with the story! And thank you once again! And pwease keep the reviews going.  
  
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Naruto opened his eyes and looked around. Yep he was back in his mind again. What could the snake want this time he wondered? As if hearing his intentions the large snake laughed….hard as if mocking Naruto. Naruto frowned and crossed his arms across his chest and seemingly pouted. Which of course caused the large snake to hold back a laugh as the boy glared at him with a cute pout dancing on his face. Mankuos slithered up to the lit iron bars and sighed deeply. He had indeed called him down for a conversation. He just was not sure how he would take to it.

**"Yesss I called you down here Naruto. We have to talk about something."** Mankuos spoke with a rare hint of seriousness in his voice. Naruto looked puzzled and stopped pouting as he looked up to the snake.

**" I have been 'alive' for around two weeks, correct?"** The ranking snake peered down at its host and waited for a reaction. The said container nodded his head slowly as in still trying to wrap his brain around the concept. When suddenly the boy's eyes met the snakes and he opened his mouth to speak.

"Wait! How exactly did you come to life?!" Naruto asked frantically with concern in his voice. He had no clue what really went on with him and he was hoping to find out. The large creature looked up towards the ceiling and sighed. This would take a while.  
**  
"Look, my physical manifestation took residence in the ssssseal via chakra provided by external ssssources. Through this process I was temporarily revived as long as the flow of chakra was there. My physical being could not be sustained without a proper soul to conduct along the pathways. That is was the ssssspirit of the Fox was required. Through the Fox I regained all of my ssssstrength through the cellular manifestation of the physical combined with the sssspiritual. Once that was accomplished I had partaken in the use of the new Chakra and called out to my spiritual self and recalled my host ssssoul. Once the host soul found the anchoring corpse I willed it back into my newly formed body. There a tug of war between the two souls was initiated and combat ensued. On a normal plane my soul would not have the necessary willpower to attempt a hostile engagement with the Fox. Circumstances allowed me to gain the upper hand. The Fox was at merely half power and I had weakened it by forcing another half of his power into my sssssskeleton to enhance my own sssssssspiritual being. I used his own sssssspiritual power to overwhelm and consume his ssssssoul and memories which is why I took my ssssssix day Hiatus."** Mankuos spoke proudly of how he was able to outwit a Fox at its own game of cunning and tricks. Naruto on the other hand was not faring so well. Sure he was smarter but he was book smart. He did not understand what the Snake said for the most part.

"Sooo you used his soul to heal your body?" Mankuos sighed.

**"…Thatsss a dumbed down versssion but yessss."** In a way Naruto was happy. The one thing that caused him so much pain and suffering was now gone and was replaced by a new entity will to make a new start.

"So what exactly does that make you?" Naruto asked while pondering on some other thoughts. Mankuos was shocked by the fact Naruto had asked a question that he had not though much of yet. Mankuos seemed to ponder this question as well. He only had one theory that could possibly work.

**"My guessss iss that I am now a member of the Bijuu family and since I was released from the Snake Summons family I would guess that could make sense. I have absorbed a part of Kyuubi and thus have been granted his power. I can only guess this meanssss we have the Host-Bijuu relationship if I am correct."** Naruto looked up at him in shock but nodded. Mankuos closed his eyes and thought for a little while. He slowly opened his eyes as now he had a new question to ask.

**"Naruto, what about you has changed ssssince I was brought to life?"** Naruto didn't have to think long before a whole slew of information came crashing into the fore front of his thoughts.

"Well my hair is purple and I see more clearly now. I can also see body heat. I feel more slim and slender and I have a much easier time staying calm and controlled despite the situation. This all seems to be heightened when I use my Curse Seal." That seemed to get the Snake's attention as his eyes dangerously narrowed on Naruto when he mentioned the seal.

**"Tell me more about the ssseal."** Mankuos demanded.

"Well it has my Father's Senjutsu chakra in it and allows my body to become physically enhanced. Father said I truly didn't need the seal but that it would allow me to handle enemies that were far above me for brief times should I actually need a boost of power. He also said it would limit the flow of the Bijuu chakra in my body so that I did not shorten my life span when I needed to use that Chakra." Mankuos nodded before speaking again.

**"I sssee. That is a problem indeed Naruto. You see that seal limits my own chakra as well. Though I would not worry about that now. I have to purge the Fox chakra from your system. This will take a few years. Also, I think you should know that Water is not your only element. You also have the affinity for Air as well."** Naruto literally jumped to the roof of the place with excitement at the prospect of being able to work with another type of element. The large former Boss Snake just shook his head.

**"Well Naruto if you are going to be my container then maybe you outta use some of my skills yes?"** Naruto's eyes sparkled and twinkled in the light at the sound of using Snake jutsu and taking another step to follow his father in his style. The snake slammed its massive tail onto the ground to get his attention and point across to Naruto. Naruto stopped celebrating and looked up at the Snake who just chuckled.

"Sorry about that, hehe, I still get carried away at times. What are you going to teach me?" Naruto asked with a settled expression on his face. Mankuos smiled and moved on to explaining things.

**"The first will be to shed your 'skin' and regenerate from seemingly impossible injuries." Naruto's jaw slammed on the floor. "It comes with a heavy draw back. The amount of Chakra it consumes it almost enough to make it not worth using. Lucky you have large reserves but still. I doubt you could do this technique more than….once in a long drawn out fight. Maybe two times in a short fight with you will have no chakra after such."** Naruto nodded fast and understood the risks. Using this jutsu was a last resort and doing so would leave him greatly crippled in a fight but he could survive**. "How you do it is to focus chakra through your skin. Every part of it. Then when you have built up enough your force it all out through your mouth carrying your skin with it. The chakra copies the cell information and when forced up and out with the chakra causes it to replicate itself thus shedding the skin. Oh and don't worry about the cloths. They come back too."** Mankuos spoke with a matter of fact tone and Naruto understood almost instantly. He loved to be taught new things. But he also had a question.

"Hey wait if you said you are now a Bijuu. Doesn't that mean I get traits of yours?"

**"Ahh yesss I remember I was going to talk about that. Yes you get some attriubtes. That is most likely why your hair changed colors and now you can see heat. Most likely also due to the body changes as well if I am not mistaken. "** Naruto nodded before feeling the presence of someone stirring him in the real world. He waved to the large snake that brought his tail up to the light and waved back while giggling like a little boy.

(Outside in the real world)

Naruto was resting a bit before his second training session with his father began for the day. They went solely on Taijutsu for the first round. The Second one would either be Ninjutsu or Kenjutsu. They did not quite reach Genjutsu yet. Not until the seal could get his massive chakra storage under wraps and in control as was its true purpose. Orochimaru came back to Naruto to rouse him from his meditative slumber.

"Son, Its time for the Ninjutsu sparring session. Are you ready?" Orochimaru asked getting into stance. Naruto got into his own stance and prepared himself. Behind him was a pool of water. Excellect. Just was he needed to get the dice rolling.

"Begin." Orochimaru commanded and Naruto leapt back several feet to land near the water. He ran through several hand signs before calling out **"Mizu no Tatsumaki! (Tornado of Water)" **and from behind him the water rushed out to swirl around its master and defending him from harm. Lucky for Naruto the jutsu came just in time as the fire balls smashed into him and dissipated. The force alone caused Naruto to get launched into the water below. Within mere seconds Naruto came lunging out of the water. Naruto stood up and ran through some hand seals and almost finished them if it weren't for the sword in his stomach. Naruto looked down and mentally cursed as he exploded into water. Orochimaru's eyes widened in shock as he looked to see Naruto directly behind him finishing a long series of hand seals and called out **"Ja no Kuchi! (Serpent Mouth)" **and a large torrent of spinning water swirled up behind Naruto and took the form of a Snake with its mouth opened and lunged towards a stunned Orochimaru. Naruto felt a large chunk of chakra leave his body as he completed the jutsu and time slowed down for him when he heard a voice.

**"Hello Hatchling."** Mankuos spoke through the mental link.

_"Mankuos? How are you talking to me?"_

**"Through our mental link of the Bijuu. Thought I'd take the time and tell you a trick."**

_"Sure! What is it?"_

**"By using air you can make water hit a lot harder. Try this one. Futon: Daitoppa. It creates a strong gust of wind. Pour the rest of your chakra into it to make it stronger since you haven't trained this element at all really. The hand seals are Tiger-Ox-Dog-Rabbit-Snake."**

"Thanks a bunch!" Naruto re-focused into the main battle and concentrated the last drops of Chakra he had left inside of him. He ran through the hand seals just as the Snake was getting ready to hit Orochimaru and called out **"Fuuton: Daitoppa! (Great Breakthrough)" **and instantly Naruto dropped to one knee and started breathing heavy. Using a B-ranked Jutsu followed by a C-ranked Jutsu drained him completely. He was no superman. He did have big chakra reserves but not large enough to keep going like this. The immense gust of wind smashed into the water snake and forced the impact to hit twice as hard. Orochimaru soon found himself pelted under water with the wind smashing him up against a wall in the cavern. Both Jutsu eventually let up and Naruto was beyond exhausted with what had just happened. Orochimaru on the other hand seemed to practically beam with pride and joy! His son had not only taken on his Water affinity, albeit that is the weaker one, but also his stronger and more dominate Wind affinity! Orochimaru could now train him much more fluently.

"Well done Naruto. If I were a careless Jonin who underestimated you I would surely be dead. Most Chunin could escape from that and survive. I doubt any Genin could handle that. And all Jonin could escape but you thought ahead and caught me off guard. Anyone would have been killed. Tell me. How did you plan it out?"

Naruto had to think for a minute and catch up on his breathing. Once that was done he explained it. "Well I started my calculations when you said begin. The moment I jumped back I knew the hand seals you were performing and as expected you launched the Fireball at me. I did my best water defense Jutsu and waited. I knew you would over power the water and launch me back. I planned to fall into the water. Once there I made water clone and sent him out while using my chakra to remain underwater. At the same time I used my sound ninja training to hear what was going on through the vibrations of the water. I slowly crept to the surface right as you impaled my clone. Standing perfectly behind him I discreetly ran through the hand seals. Once done I launched the jutsu at you knowing that with the sword sticking so far out of your mouth it would be harder for you to dodge. The Fuuton jutsu was…improvised." By the end of his explanation Orochimaru was clapping. He was proud that his son had planned to win the battle before it even began. It made him happy to see his was beginning to think like a leader and a Snake. He would need them if he was to survive this horrible and ruined world. Orochimaru smiled as he knew now his son could handle what was to come next.

"Naruto go and rest. Tomorrow you have a mission to complete with the Sound Four." Naruto nodded. He was glad that he could go to his bed and plop down to sleep. Tiredly he drug his feet throughout the town before he got to the other side and weaved through the underground base. He opened the door and promptly fell down and instantly passed out.

Meanwhile, Orochimaru was wondering through the training cavern that he and Naruto occupied most of the time before turning and opening up a door. Orochimaru pushed through the door and let out a nasty sounding cough. Taking a few seconds to recover he looked up and grabbed the pills that Kabuto had in his hand that were customary around this time. Orochimaru swallowed them and stopped sweating and recovered his breath.

"Kabuto, it is time. I need to find another suitable host body. This one…..is losing its life force and fast. We must think of a proper host." Orochimaru discussed with a pained expression in his face. The pills only dulled the pain this time. It did not remove it entirely. Kabuto pushed up his glasses and began to ponder.

"Well I may have an idea Orochimaru-sama. We need to become a great village get more business this way right? Well we already control a large portion of all the rice, wheat and flour that goes to the other Shinobi villages. I looked over the books and if we were to pull out of our current business deals that all the villages would suffer major food shortages. Konoha and Kiri villages may be able to support themselves due to the animals in the area but many shops would go out of business and cause financial collapse. Iwa and Kumo and Suna would have a much harder time to survive than normal due to the locations. Kumo may have fish to stock up on but after a few months that would be gone. Meanwhile the only damage we would suffer is a small lapse in income that could be replaced by selling in small amounts once shortages were hit for a higher cost. I purpose we use this to get the Chunin exams moved here. The Kages are all meeting in Konoha in roughly three weeks' time. I can create a letter and send it to Konoha. This would be a step towards uniting our Villages and bringing them closer. I am sure Naruto would love this idea and would want to accompany you to the meeting. Also with the Chunin exams held here you would be able to scout out the skill level of up and coming Ninja and find one body suitable to your liking." Kabuto finished as he pushed up his glasses. Orochimaru pondered this to see if he could find any loopholes in his plan. When he found none he simply nodded and the two began to discuss the building plans for the exams.

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Naruto was having a case of déjà vu as he once again woke up in his mindscape. The Snake this time was waiting for him and didn't bother to snicker or giggle at him. Instead he had a serious look on his face.

**"Naruto, did you feel any different before you went to bed?" **Mankuos asked in a serious tone that did not go unnoticed by the former blonde.

"No, I was still suffering from that chakra exhaustion." The large snake lowered his head and began to think deeply about something. Though what it could be about was anyone's guess.

**"Thatsss what I expected. Until I remove the Fox Chakra I am unable to help you in most forms. I cannot replenish your chakra or use my own to heal you faster. The Fox's chakra still does that of its own accord but a much weaker version since it does not contain the actual spirit with it."** Mankuos finished in a quieter tone then when he started. Naruto nodded before a question popped into his head.

"Wait why would you ask that if you already knew the answer?" Naruto asked while giving him a quizzical look.

**"Well I tried to use my chakra to refill yours and was met with heavy resistance. If you had told me you were in pain then I would know that it was because your body was not use to this foreign chakra. Alas you said you were but tired. So I concluded that this must be the primary reason."** Mankuos nodded to give his genius merit and pride before looking down and noticing Naruto had vanished**. "Must have been woken up. Either that or he is having another dream about the red haired chick with the flute. If it is another dream I can't wait to watch! Lassst time was sooo…..vulgar. Who would have thought he had it in him. Then again would have though a snake would be talking to himself? I'll just….erm….rest now…stop talking and rest now….yeah."** With that the large imposing and slightly delirious snake went back to sleep and Naruto awoke from his exhausted slumber.

(Outside)

Naruto awoke with a start. He had just had a dream of which he had never experienced before. He was on a bed with some girl with long flowing red hair and what was worse is that he was naked! He couldn't shake the feeling that he knew this person or that he could of swore someone was laughing at him when he woke up. Shaking his head he got out of bed and noticed he had an oddly warm feeling in his stomach that was slowly leaving him. Shaking his head to remove the pleasant sensation he got dressed and went to the Tower to meet his father.

He traveled much faster due to his pulse pounding excitement and arrived in what felt like seconds. He traversed the stairs with practiced easy and gently opened the door. The Sound Four were there along with Orochimaru.

"Ah yes hello Naruto. Glad you could join us so early. I was just about to brief everyone on the mission and tell you when you arrived but since you are here we can begin. Three nights ago there was a break in at a secret vault that I had hidden throughout the land. Luckily for us this vault was merely a decoy that had rare looking items and false research data. Each one of those items had a tracking device planted inside the item itself or in the folder in the case of the papers. This is very important because I want you all to track this signal and bring it back here. I am going with you to retrieve it and kill the man who stole it but I will not help unless something absolutely major is required of me that the rest of you cannot pull off. I want this done silently. Naruto is in charge and he is fit to plan this mission out accordingly. You are all dismissed and you will meet up at the gate to the village in seven hours from now."

(Three days later at the boarder of Oto and Konoha)

All of the traveling members stopped and looked over the city. The trees were tall and gave them the perfect look out to scope the city with. Naruto scanned the area with his eyes picking out anything suspicious that he could. Naruto poured a small amount of chakra to his eyes to get them to glow and sense body heat. He scanned the area and found several signatures. Naruto relaxed the flow of chakra and turned towards the group behind him.

"Alright, I found our target. He is on the third story of the building directly in front of us. Four guards are on the roof and three on the ground. One is guarding the front door and one guarding the back door and one traveling between the two. The four on the roof are in the four corners of the building and are also watching over the guards below. The building is clearly well lit and it would be nearly impossible to remove them all without raising the alarm. The best way to do this would be to simultaneously remove all the threats at the same time. This will be a challenge but I think we can do this. There are three power boxes that are all connected to each other and to the alarm I am guessing. The only way to remove that is to shut them all down at the same time. The biggest problem is that they can only be shut down from the inside lever. So we will have to open the boxes and pull all three levers at the same time. Kidomaru, Jirobo and Tayuya you guys will go to each of the boxes and await the signal. Sakon and Ukon you guys will ascend the wall and wait for the power to drop. Once the lights are out you will kill the guards up top. I will handle the bottom floor ones and ensure the doors are locked and sealed so that no one can get out. Everyone know what they are doing?" Earning nods and grumbles from the group "Alright then. Wait for just one more second….wait for it…..Now!" The group dashed off towards the objectives.  
Kidomaru, Tayuya and Jirobo all went their separate ways to the boxes and waited for the signal. Sakon climbed up the wall with his brother Ukon and waited before getting ready to leap into action. Naruto opened two bottles of water he was carrying and made two water clones. All three Narutos drew their swords and waited a moment till the guard made his round to right in front of Naruto and his path of travel. Naruto flared his chakra and the lights went out. Before the three guards knew it they each had a sword through their chest and collapsed onto the ground. Naruto dispersed his clones and left seal tags on the doors so that they wouldn't open. Naruto looked off to the side to see people flying off and landing on the ground with sickening thuds. Naruto shook his head and opened the door he was in front of then applied Chakra to the seal to activate it. He walked slowly up the stairs till he got to the second floor. Sitting at a table were three guards of various sizes who stood up and instantly drew kunai upon seeing Naruto.

"Hey! What the hell are you doing here?!" The biggest thug asked.

"Who cares?! Get him!" The shortest one who was around Naruto's height belted out the words.

He charged at Naruto in a simple and straight forward path. Naruto leapt over him and grabbed him by the collar before throwing him into the medium sized thug thus knocking them to the ground and sending them tumbling. The heavy set thug came charging at Naruto. Naruto slashed at his knees causing him to fall, Naruto quickly appeared behind the disabled thug and plunged his sword through his back. Killing him instantly. The other two thugs got up only to find two kunai firmly planted in their skulls. The two thugs slumped down on the ground and died from the injury. Naruto kept his sword out and walked up to the third floor where he father was having a 'conversation' with the man who stole to the item. Naruto noticed that the man who was guarding the door had not noticed what was going on inside the room. The man sure did notice Naruto though. He drew his own sword and it was instantly incased in flames.

"Ah yes. I heard noise downstairs and I thought the other fools might be dead. Turns out I was right eh? You must be the reason that they did indeed croak. I look forward to our fight. My name is Abbot. I don't need to know your name as it is insignificant." With that Abbot charged at Naruto and the two clashed swords.

Naruto delivered a powerful kick to his stomach and slowly broke down the battle in his head.  
_  
'Alright so to be able to ignite his sword he must be a Katon nature. Great. My Fuuton nature will be no good here but my Suiton nature will be perfect. Unfortunately for me this is a closed hallway and the windows are shut. With that burning sword I won't be able to pull any type of water at all. He most likely has more experience than me. I can use that to my advantage. In a straight up sword fight he will eventually overwhelm and fatally wound me. Knowing his arrogance he will leave me to bleed out. I will shed my skin and get him when he isn't looking. Let's go!'_

Naruto lunged at Abbot who simply side-stepped him and brought his sword down in a decapitating motion. Naruto quickly swept his legs and brought his sword down to chop at his chest. Abbot rolled out of the way and stood back and charged at Naruto. Naruto brought his sword up to block a vertical slash from Abbot who copied Naruto and kicked him in the chest sending Naruto back a few feet. Abbot closed the distance and had to defend from a horizontal strike from Naruto. Naruto quickly spun around and did another sideways strike. This time Abbot was prepared and jumped back before lunging and planting his sword firmly into Naruto's ribcage. Abbot smirked as Naruto lay limp against the floor.

"I told you your name would not matter in the end. All will fall before my blade skills." With his small victory speech her turned and smiled as he looked through the window to observe the forest. Meanwhile Naruto focused his chakra and suddenly his corpse opened its mouth. Naruto slimed his way out silently and took his sword from his dead hands and put it back in his sheathe. Naruto took Abbot's sword out from his chest and slowly crawled over to Abbot who seemed too lost in his own little world to really see anything. Naruto slowly stood up and drove the blade straight through Abbot's heart causing him to gasp and drop to his knees.

"The name is Naruto by the way." Abbot tried to form a word but his mouth wouldn't work as he fell to the side dead as a door knob. Naruto opened the window Abbot was look through and jumped out. Once he landed he made his was safely back to the meeting zone where the others were including his father.

"Run into trouble Naruto?" Kidomaru asked with a smirk. Naruto just glared at him and shook his head.

"Nothing I couldn't handle. Just some arrogant thug on a power trip." Orochimaru nodded and they all left for Oto.

(Three days later)

The sun had just come up from traversing the globe and once again shone brightly over the Land of Rice. A tried group of Ninja made their way to the tower in which they would be debriefed and assessed on their mission performance. Naruto, of course, was the last one to arrive.

"Welcome Naruto. Let's get started shall we?" Earning a nod from the group Orochimaru continued "Tayuya, Kidomaru, Jirobo, Sakon and Ukon. You all performed your jobs to a tee and executed them perfectly. I would applaud you but I expect these results every time I send you on a mission. Naruto, I am most impressed with your ability to draw out a battle plan. What surprised me more is that you adapted to the situation once you learned of people inside the building that you did not sense before. I can see your training is paying off and I am proud of your advancement. You still have a long way to go but your mind seems to be picking up on tactics very well. The rest of you are dismissed. I need to speak with Naruto alone." The Sound Four nodded and turned to leave. Just Naruto and Orochimaru remained.

"Son, something very important is coming up and I want you to go with me." Naruto looked confused but otherwise remained silent to let his father continue "I am going to Konoha to convince the Kages to have the Chunin exams held here."

Naruto's eyes nearly shot out of their sockets when he heard this news. Soon though he overcame his shock and smiled brightly. This would mean he would get to see Hinata and Shino again and see how they were doing! Naruto's body visibly shook with excitement and energy.

"Also, either way it goes I am signing you up to engage in the Chunin exams with Tayuya and Kinuta Dosu. You will meet the later at some other point when he returns from a mission. You will be the only squad representing the Sound so you must do well so the village can prosper. Do you understand?" Orochimaru asked a concerned but serious tone. He knew Naruto was ready to take on the exams but his lack of experience made his father greatly worried about the fact that he could become very hurt in the process. Naruto nodded anyway and kept the same energy as before despite his father's words. Orochimaru smiled at his son.

"Very good. Now for completing your mission I am going to start your Snake Training. At least the first stage of it. You have already signed the contract so this next part will be easy." Naruto once again looked more confused at the words then what he needed to be. "Let me see your arms son." Naruto did as he was told and Orochimaru ran through some hand seals and placed each hand on Naruto's forearms. Suddenly a weird double ringed tattoo popped onto his forearms. Naruto looked at them as if wondering if anything was supposed to happen by now. Orochimaru remembered that look because he had it at one point when he first received the Snake Tattoo. Orochimaru fought back a chuckle as the memories of his youth swept over him.

"Hey father what are these things supposed to do? I mean sure they look cool and I don't want to sound ungrateful…." Naruto let his sentence trail off when he got a curious look from his father.

"Naruto these are called Snake Tattoos. Without them you have to perform a series of hand seals for the first jutsu I am going to teach you." Naruto returned to his normal happy self and nodded away. Orochimaru chuckled and moved on. "Simply focus chakra into the seal and point your arm at something."

Naruto did as he was told and focused chakra into the seal on his arm. Suddenly a single small purple snake came and dropped out of his sleeve then puffed away in a cloud of smoke. Naruto's face was a wide grin and bulging eyes.

"That was awesome!" Naruto exclaimed as he fist pumped into the air.

"As you can see you will still need to practice it of course but you have at least taken the first step. Now go back to your room and rest. We have much to do tomorrow." Naruto nodded and bowed before leaving for his room. Leaving Orochimaru in his office in a fit of coughs before Kabuto came in and saw Orochimaru on his knees heaving up blood from his mouth. Kabuto ran over and performed a medical scan on his body. It was destroying itself from the inside. His cells were dying and unable to make healthy and new ones. His skin tissue was dying faster than it was regenerating. All in all his body was dying and he would need a new one today. Kabuto lifted Orochimaru and quickly carried him to the lab that was on the other side of town in an underground location. Kabuto dragged Orochimaru to the spot and left his body there. Roughly ten minutes later Orochimaru's mouth opened and his true soul form came out. He was a long snake made up of smaller white snakes. His jaw was angular and pointy and his hair was spikey. Just across from him was a man chained to a wall. He had a bandaged face and a veil that covered one of his eyes. He was dressed in the typical gear for someone of a jonin for this particular village. This man was Baki from Suna.

"Ugh" he groggily spoke as the effects of the sedative wore off "Where am I?" Baki noticed something moving in the shadows "Who's there?!" he asked in a panicked expression. He pulled hard on the devices holding up his arms. They did not move and he noticed he did not have the strength required to pull the chains off the wall. Orochimaru slithered up while still in the snake form and showed his face in the light.

"My dear Baki, there is no need to fear the sight of me. This is merely my soul vessel and very soon we will become one." With that Orochimaru lunged at Baki and transferred his soul. Cause the large white snake to fall over and flop like the husk it was. Baki on the other had could not contain his screams as he felt his soul seemingly ripped out of his body. Those screams could be heard all around the village that night.

After a few hours Orochimaru came out of the hidden underground base completely back to health and looking normal and around the same height as before. Kabuto looked at him and decided to ask a question on Naruto's behalf.

"Orochimaru-sama do you plan on telling Naruto-sama of your condition and the steps you have taken to acquire your goal of eternal life?" Orochimaru just sighed.

"No Kabuto I do not plan on telling him. He…He does not need to know of this yet. Someday I will pass that along and if I can't then the curse seal can." Kabuto looked stunned before pushing up his glasses.

"You mean the seal can…"

"Yes." Orochimaru cut him off and the two walked back to town to properly bandage Orochimaru's skin so that it may heal properly."

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

(Few hours earlier)

Naruto had just left his Fathers office and was planning on grabbing some Ramen and then go to bed. Plans did change and the heavenly soup was not his to claim that night. Instead the only thing that caught his attention was a rather lovely tune that gently floated out and around Naruto's ears. Naruto snapped his attention to the direction the tune seemed to be coming from. It followed it and it eventually led to a small house on the outskirts of the city and was rather bland looking compared to the other styles of buildings. Naruto told himself he should just leave whoever it was alone bit his ears refused to let his legs move. Instead he crept up to the house to find the door was slightly open and thus how the tune was able to leave. He peered into the crack of the door and saw Tayuya playing her flute. Naruto smacked his forehead.

'Of course it would be Tayuya. Who else plays music in this place?!' Naruto thought. He was a little too lost in thought to notice the music had stopped playing and the door had fully opened leaving a pissed off red head in the spot where the door had been.

"GAH!" Naruto said as he fell backwards onto the ground. The aforementioned red head had half a mind to beat him all the way back into town but decided against.

"What the fuck are you doing here?!" She exclaimed with purpose and fury.

"I-I came to tell you that I liked your music. It was gentle. Unlike someone I know…" He mumbled the last part but the Sound member was no fool and heard him.

"What was that you little shit!?"

"Like I said I just came by to tell you that song was nice to listen to." With that Naruto turned to walk away sensing that he would not get anything more than yelled at by her. Tayuya blinked twice and tilted her head slightly to the left and looked at him as he walked away. Someone had come simply to tell her she had a nice sounding music talent? No one ever did that out of sheer kindness.

"H-hey wait!" Tayuya called out then instantly cursed herself for stuttering. She fought down a blush and quickly moved over to him "Would you like to know the name of the song?" Naruto raised a brow at her then slowly nodded his head "Snake Charmer."

Tayuya sat down in the grass and began playing. Naruto followed suit and sat down next to her and listened to her play to the setting sun that loomed on the horizon. She played for several hours before the two awkwardly parted ways for their respective sleeping arrangements. Although the day may have ended strangely the two could swear this was the beginning of something that would save both of their lives in the future.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

**A/N: Well there is it. Another chapter down! Woo! Now I want to take this time to answer a few questions I have been asked.**

First, Both Hinata and Sasuke will be very important to the story. The part with Sasuke last chapter was not there just to take up space. He will play a massive role as he plays a close relationship with Naruto and Hinata. Also Mankuos plays a much bigger part than just being an Ex-Boss summon and replacing the good ole fox.

Second, The reason Naruto has a curse seal is very important. I can reveal what exactly will happen with it but I can promise you it will be a surprise. For now all it does is help limit his chakra to give him easier chakra control and enhance his power when he needs it. Orochimaru gave him this to allow him to stand on less shaky ground when going up against people that could kill him. Think of it as a quick hit of nitro to cross the finish line if you will.

Third, Konoha and Oto will not have relations until the Chunin exams. Hiruzen is still alive and Danzo will be making a play for Naruto to return in the next chapter. Also the reason Hunter Nins are not going after him is that he is but a mere genin. Most would not waste their time and since he was taken in by another village it would be hard to do so without backlash.

That is really all of the questions I care to answer at this point. I would answer more but I do not wish to give away more of the story. Either way thank you all for reading this chapter. Let me know how I did on the action scenes. I'm new to writing those kinds of scenes so I would love the feedback. Let me know what you think of the development of the characters.

Hint for next time: When you have lost your sword do you pick up a shield or do you make a run for the sword? Think of Danzo and Naruto in this regard.

Quick question, I was wondering. I have two ways I want to do this and want to know which way you all would like best. Should Naruto stay loyal to one women? Or should the two women know they each are equally important and share him? Let me know your thoughts. Until next time!


	10. Chapter 10:Return Part 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

Summary: Naruto and Orochimaru head back to the Leaf Village to find it has changed beyond their recognition.

A/N: Sorry about the long absence. Problems arose and I had to deal with them. But now I am back! Here we go!  
  
OoOoO

'_Gah! Blasted Snake! Why can't you just make sense for once!_' Naruto belted angrily at his inward companion.

"**Its not my fault you are dense sometimes. This is a rather simple process. You just lack insight.**" The Snake responded with a slight venom in his voice.

'_I am not dense! This is just hard to learn is all. Plus you aren't being any help at all!_' Naruto fired back.

"If **I could help you then it wouldn't be as rewarding would it? Plus what makes you think I would want to help you anyway?**" the Large Snake asked while peering down at his host with a curious look and a lifted expression where his eyebrow would be.

Naruto wiped the mental sweat from his form and opened his mouth to speak but could not find anything to say to counter the elders claim. Instead he closed his mouth and focused once again. He put his hand in the ram seal and began to focus his chakra into his chest. Once he had gathered a decent amount he began to focus it into his stomach. He pushed his large mass of chakra into the deeper part of his stomach until it hit the acid. Once it hit the acid his chakra copied the properties of the fluid and Naruto willed it to come out his mouth. Naruto pulled his head back and spat forward with all his might only to have an ever so slight drop of acid leave his mouth and drop to the ground harmlessly. Naruto frowned and let out a frustrated sigh.

'_I did it exactly like you said. I guess I can't use venom yet._'

"**Hatchling, don't fret. Most members of the Snake Clan can't use venom until after the first hundred years.**"

'I _don't have a hundred years to wait. I may need it soon. Speaking of time. Father should be back to have our spar. I'll talk to you later._' Naruto closed his mental eyes and shimmered out of his mindscape leaving the purple snake to be by himself.

"**You are certainly an interesting hatchling**." The Snake commented before lowering his head to rest his massive body.

OoOoO

Naruto opened his eyes to find himself back in the training center he and his father used so very often. Naruto was near a large body of water and Orochimaru was near the large vat of oil that could be set on fire in an instant.

"Enjoying your conversation with the Tenant?" Orochimaru asked with a smirk. Naruto frowned at his father's question. Ever since the Naruto and Mankuos started mentally training they had strained their relationship and it often made Naruto tired and sloppy by the Sannin's measures.

"As well as could be I guess." Naruto spoke and Orochimaru nodded.

"Naruto I need to tell you something. You remember how about a few months ago I was covered in bandages?" Naruto seemed to think about it and nodded to him.

"You see before I left the Village I discovered something. My body seemed to be decaying at a fast rate. Faster than normal. So when I left I began to search for a cure and to study what was going wrong with me. I did a lot of research and found a few others who had this throughout history. Turns out they all died from this sickness. This left me with no options at all for survival. I refused to let myself die without seeing you at all. So with that in mind I began to think of a new way to stay alive. I figured if the sickness only hurt my physical body then that must mean that if I transferred bodiesI would have no problems. So that's what I did. I created a jutsu that would allow me to transfer bodies to a new host. The process would be long and painful for the host body. It took time but I finally got it to work properly. I have transferred three times. With the last time being the one you saw a few months back. After I mastered this jutsu I made my goal Eternal life so I could be here for you when you need me. There is a drawback. The sickness is attached to my very soul and is slowly eating away at it. I do not have very long. Around twenty years left. I am sorry son." Orochimaru finished and looked down at the ground in a rare moment of sadness and pain. Naruto was on the verge of tears by the end of the story. Naruto sniffled hard and spoke with a shaking voice.

"Even if you transfer you will still die?" He asked though he knew the answer to his question already. Orochimaru looked up and nodded at his son.

"Promise you won't harm anyone by transferring again? I know you did it to be healthy and such for me but I am here now."

"Naruto my body will die out long before my soul does. In about three years I will need to transfer again or else I risk being crippled and stuck in a dead body."

"Couldn't you just put a seal on the body to make it last till you died or something of that manner?" Orochimaru looked at his son with a stunned and somewhat surprised look. Sure he had thought of doing that before but the way his son spoke with such hurt in his voice made him seriously consider the boy and his words. Naruto sounded like he truly was hurt of his measures to survive. Orochimaru decided at that moment to seriously look into making a survival seal to keep the body alive till it was his time to go. This caused the Snake Sannin to smile as it reminded him of his precious lost love.

"Very well son. I will work on it. Now how about a spar before we rest for tomorrow?" Naruto perked up instantly and nodded vigorously "Using everything you can to win. Ready?" Orochimaru asked as the two readied up "Begin!"

Naruto launched from his stance and ran to his father with his right hand cocked back. Naruto threw his right fist at his father and found it was instantly blocked by a forearm. Naruto instantly brought his knee up to hit Orochimaru's ribs but was easily blocked by his free hand. Orochimaru brought his own right hand back and threw it at Naruto's head on the side. Naruto quickly did a back flip to dodge the punch. While jumping backwards Naruto ran through some simple hand seals before he landed. Once landed Naruto held both palms up and from his sleeves a dozen snakes launched out at poised themselves at Orochimaru. The Snake Sannin jumped back and quickly and drew his sword. The snakes kept on their path and shot after Orochimaru with deadly speed. Orochimaru quickly and systematically cut them apart with speed and grace. Once the snakes puffed out of existence Orochimaru looked around for Naruto.

Naruto on the other hand had disappeared in the confusion and teleported to the roof quietly. He quickly analyzed the situation at hand like he was taught to do. He narrowed his eyes as he focused on his target. Time slowed down and the thoughts began.

_'Let's see now. Target has superior skills in every aspect of the Ninja arts. He has superior height and weight. Now how to bring him down? He is very observant so he will be hard to trick. Genjutsu is not my strength so that is out. I have the edge in Ninjutsu due to my supply of chakra. He has the edge in Taijutsu and Kenjutsu. Now let's see. What do I have an edge in? Smaller, Harder to spot, Harder to follow…..Wait that's it! I can see body heat if I push chakra up to my eyes. If I set the oil on fire and let it burn for a while I could get it really hot. But ill need another distraction. Clones will have to do for that job. Then I'll use the water and put the fire out with a light sprinkle to create a lot of smoke. Ill have clone hold a wind jutsu to keep the smoke down low but without blowing it away. I'll drop down low and use speed and my heat vision to attack swiftly and from all angles without making noise. He will have a lower heat than the rest of the steam so that will make him easy to identify. Once he catches on and removes the steam I'll use the water in the air to create a giant water prison and trap him. That's it!_' Naruto smirked at his plan and began it. Time slowly sped back up and Naruto launched his plan.

A large plume of smoke erupted from the roof and several Narutos dropped down to combat their father. While the clones do their work Naruto made another clone and left him up there as the real Naruto fell down. Once he fell Naruto casted an ever so small fire jutsu at the oil causing it to ignite in a hurry. Naruto smirked and turned around just in time to see his last clone puff out of life and to feel the rush of memories come back. Naruto ran through the hand seals again and sent another small army out towards his father. Orochimaru for his part kept cutting and slashing the clones with brutal efficiency Naruto quickly took his chance and shot a stream of water that broke into a type of sprinkler and the steam started to rise. Naruto looked up and signaled to his clone. The clone began to use the gentle wind jutsu and held to steam down. Once the area was covered Naruto activated his eyes and used them to see in the dense steam. He locked onto his father and sped off without a sound. With a kunai in his hand he made several cuts and slashes on his target before Orochimaru jumped out of the steam and stuck to the ceiling and killed the wind using Naruto. Orochimaru looked down at his son and smiled.

"Very good plan son with the water and fire. If I was sloppy or careless I would have been dead." Naruto smiled at him and relaxed from his stance.

"Will I ever be as good as you?" Naruto asked his father who looked down at him with a slight frown.

"No Naruto you will likely be much better than I am. You have the raw potential to surpass all the Sannin." Naruto seemed to brighten up at this with his purple hair flowing slightly behind him and his green eyes glowing with fury."Now let's get cleaned up. We have a long way to travel today and I want to get there on time. Ill meet you at the gate in one hour." And with this Orochimaru vanished from sight leaving Naruto by himself.

"Well Leaf village here I come!"

OoOoO

Roughly an hour had passed since the training session and Naruto had cleaned himself up and was beginning to ponder his Father's words. Did he truly believe he would be able to best all the Sannin one day? Would he be able to accomplish such a feat? That's when it dawned on him and he felt rather ashamed he never asked before. His Father did always say "Understand your enemy before besting them." Naruto moved with a little bit more purpose in his step as the question burned in his head: Just who were the Sannin to his Father? Naruto re-dressed himself and went off to the direction of the gate.

After a few quick rooftop hops and a rather unpleasant encounter with a bird who felt threatened he made it to the area he was supposed to meet his father. His flowing purple hair, now a mess thanks to the encounter, came back and settled behind him peacefully despite its messy look. Naruto frowned and was going to meet his father when an Anbu dropped down in front of him.

"Apologies honored son of the Otokage. As per orders I have to scan you to make sure you are indeed the son of the Otokage. Please stand still." Naruto complied with his instructions but could not hide his blush on his cheeks from embarrassment. He could never get used to people treating him like Kami-sama walking the Earth. The way people addressed him was a certain change. No longer was he trampled over and beat for no reason. Now people couldn't do enough for him. Time and Time again he told them they didn't need to do this but they genuinely wanted to be nice and help it. A refreshing change for sure. Naruto was brought out of his thoughts when he heard the Anbu signal him that he was clear. He walked forward and was met by his Father in his Kage robes with the matching hat with the Kanji for "Sound" written on it.

"Nice of you to join us. Are you ready to begin the trip?" Orochimaru asked his son with a mix of excitement and dread in his voice.

"Of course! Let's get going!" Naruto thrusted his hand in the air for added emphasis. Orochimaru chuckled at his son before dismissing the Anbu and heading into the forest. Orochimaru looked down as his son excitedly trotted ahead, dreading what was coming next.

'_Let's see just how much things have changed_.'

OoOoO

It had been several long hours since the duo had left their respective village and Naruto was getting antsy. He had been thinking of a way to bring up the subject without upsetting his Father to the point of not talking and creating and awkward silence. He quickly took in a breath and began to speak.

"Hey Father?" Orochimaru lofted an eyebrow at him. He had noticed the boy to be squirmy as of late and figured something was occupying his mind rather intensely.

"Yes?" This was it. Time to start learning more about his Father.

"What are the Sannin like?"

"What do you mean Naruto?" His father narrowed his eyes at him. Time to tread lightly.

"What were they like? Did you like them? What was your sensei like? How did you earn that title? I have heard the legend and the stories but I wanted to hear from you." He said the last part in a hushed whisper more than a statement.

Orochimaru for his part was deep in thought. Of course he knew the boy and his curious nature would cause him to seek answers about his past. This was a hard thing for him to talk about but luckily he had not asked about his mother quiet yet. His reputation as the Sannin was easier to talk about but still a hard topic.

"Very well. As you know we were part of the third Hokage's team before he was the Hokage. Sensei was a…. fair man if only a little short sighted. Not like his rival Danzo but that is beside the point." He took in a deep breath and noted Naruto was listening intently. "We were tested under the bell test."He paused upon seeing his sons confused look. "The bell test is used to demonstrate teamwork. The sensei ties two bells to his waist and tells the genin team to get them and the one that doesn't has to go back to the academy while the other two move on."

"So in their desperation they lose themselves to their pride and abandon teamwork?" Naruto asked quizzically.

"Exactly. The genin would need to work together to even have a small chance to collect the bells. Thus how the test is ran. If the team could work together then they would pass. If they couldn't then all of them would fail. Simple really when you think about it. Either way, We passed the test and went on as a team." Orochimaru had a distant look in his eye as he recalled memories together. Naruto felt bad for bringing up the subject as it seemed to be very sensitive to him. "At any rate, We began to do our missions and started gaining fame for it. We did countless missions for Konoha and gained enormous fame over the years. It wasn't until a trip to Ame that earned us the titles of Sannin."

OoOoO

(Flashback)

It was raining. No it was pouring down buckets of water but this was typical of Amegakure. Alas, Orochimaru didn't care. Sure it was getting him colder the longer they stayed in it. On the plus side it washed away all the sweat that was no doubt coming off his body at this point. Orochimaru spared a quick glance to his side and noted the sight. There stood his two teammates, Jiraiya and Tsunade, With Tsunade having her arm around Jiraiya's neck. Orochimaru looked back forward and tensed at the sight he saw. Standing on top of a Salamander was Hanzo, their target. He seemed worn down and weakened but still looked ready to fight. What happened next would be written as the birth of legends.

"Well I must say I am impressed by you three. You have certainly pushed me to a limit." Hanzo paused for a moment to let the sound of rain sink in along with his words. The aforementioned three said nothing but instead kept their gaze focused on the man before them with the intent to move if need be. Hanzo simply chuckled at them and waved his hand. "This fight has begun to bore me. You have no need to fear me any longer. Ninja like you do not come around often. I dare say you could even rival me if you had more time." Hanzo gave a slight curt nod to the group before finishing. "Good luck Sannin. You'll need it."

(End)

OoOoO

"….And after that he left and we took our belongings and left as well. When we made the report the name kind of stuck and that finishes that." Naruto was looking at his dad in awe. For such a simple moment to lead to the title that so many respected or feared. "Of course we were just the Sannin back then. As we did more increasingly difficult missions and pulled them off. Each of us are famous for different things too. I am infamous for my ninjutsu and Snake summons. Tsunade is famous for her incredible strength and medical ninjutsu along with her drinking and gambling plus her Slug summon.. Jiraiya is famous for his toads and rather unpleasant spying on females." Orochimaru sighed at this last part and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Well how were they as teammates?"

"In truth they weren't all that bad and we worked together nearly perfectly. Although as we got older our goals in life shifted. I fell down a dark path and Tsunade lost her love and little bother and Jiraiya just seemingly lost interest in the village and life in general. They were….decent people. The war changed them. It changed us all." He trailed off quietly and seemed to be saddened by the words which struck home for Naruto. For the Snake Sannin who had murdered countless people and done horrendous things in the name of science. For him to show remorse was almost unheard of.

"Thank you. I know it must be hard to talk about but thank you for sharing that with me. It means a lot." Naruto smiled at his father who in return smiled back. It was rare for the two to share tender moments with the training and all.

"Its good to share that sometimes. Helps remove some pain. Anyway, We are here." Naruto looked away from his father and his eyes lit up with joy.

They were back in Konoha.

OoOoO

The pair strode through the village. Each were hit with a nostalgia special to each of them. Naruto got the fond memories of his team and Ramen and the Hyuuga. Orochimaru was hit with war memories and his old team and his distaste for the wretched place. Naruto wore a big smile which may have looked bright and sunny if he looked like his old self. With his new look it made him look far too sinister for someone his age. Orochimaru was fixed into a more permanent scowl of disgust. Once they reached the quasi center of town Orochimaru stopped them.

"Naruto I have business to attend to here. Stay out of trouble and meet me back here in four hours okay?" Naruto nodded wildly and took off into the village. Orochimaru smiled at his son then turned his attention to the hokage tower and frowned before setting off after it at a leisure pace.

OoOoO

Orochimaru entered the tower with no resistance as he was expected there. He found this slightly odd but walked up the tower anyway and was guided into the room where the others were meeting. Inside was the Head of Suna and the Head of Konoha along with Danzo of the leaf.

"Greetings Otokage, I hope your travels went well?" Hiruzen asked with a calm voice hinting at no emotion. In truth coming to the tower had brought up a list of emotions within Orochimaru that he long had forgotten about.

"They did but If it is all the same to you. Id very much like to discuss business and purpose for my being here." This earned him nods from all in attendance. "I am entering Oto in the Exams." This got an alarm from the Hokage as to why exactly he would want that.

"What gives Otogakure the right to enter the exams?" This was Danzo who spoke. Orochimaru had a general dislike of the man just from the way he carried himself. This statement only served to upset Orochimaru but he was ready for such a thing.

"We do not have the money for a buy in but we do have connections. My land controls a vast amount of all the Rice, Flour and Wheat that is sold to the major villages. If I were to simply stop selling what do you think would happen? How long would you last without food?" Orochimaru ended with a smirk and let the others think on this. Hiruzen seemed to come to peace with it rather fast considering his wisdom and experience. The Kazekage seemed annoyed by his attempt to bully his way into the honored exams but could not fight his logic. Suna relied heavily on the foods like that. Being in a desert didn't leave them many food options. Danzo was having a hard time denying the logic. Konoha could last for a bit. A few months or so due to its reserves in storage seals but after that they would be hard pressed to obtain food.

"His logic is sound." The Kazekage spoke in a flat tone but the others could hear the irritation in his voice.

"I agree with the Kazekage. Oto will be allowed perform in the exams that will be held here in Konoha." Hiruzen ended with a sage like nod. Orochimaru opened his mouth to protest but the old Hokage cut him off "Due to the other villages, which are not present, have already agreed to."Orochimaru closed his mouth and nodded stiffly. "Now lets discuss the stages of the Exams and what it will entail…" The other Kages were so focused on learning all they could about the exams that no one noticed Danzo suddenly vanished from sight and reappeared with a sick and twisted grin on his face when he looked down from his building to see a certain purple haired boy looking completely crushed and defeated.

OoOoO

It had been only a few minutes since Naruto went off in a very familiar direction from his childhood. His smile only seemed to grow with the more familiar the location seemed to get for him. Then an idea hit him. Why not try out his stealth and surprise his Hinata-chan by showing up? It was brilliant! Naruto grinned mischievously and ascended to the rooftops near the Hyuuga compound. He slowly crawled over to the end of the building and looked down at the vast and beautiful place where his friend resided. Naruto was about to hop on down and begin his stealthy intrusion when someone else approached the door to the place and was passed by the guards. This figure looked strangely familiar to him with long dark hair and a female form. The female paused for a moment before slowly knocking on the door. Within moments the door was answered.

"Hello miss. How may I help you today?" A branch member asked in a polite enough tone.

"I came to see Hinata please." The figure spoke in a saddened tone.

"I'm sorry miss. Hinata-sama does not wish to be disturbed from her training at the moment."

"Not even for her Sensei?"

"No miss not even for you. Though she does have a message for you in case you were to drop by. She says that while you may not agree with her choice of training to become Hokage she hopes that you will honor her dream to do so in order to honor Naruto like she wants to."

"I understand but Naruto isn't dead. He is alive and I know she knows that." Kurenai finished with a stern expression on her face. The branch member frowned slightly as Hinata made her way to the door and dismissed her.

"How can I help you sensei?" Hinata's tone no longer held the joy it once had. Instead it was the voice of someone focused on a goal that desperately needed to be achieved. She was focused and nothing was going to stop her. Her hair had grown a fair amount and she had gotten a fair amount taller as well. At least for Hinata. She still sported her normal orange hoodie with her navy blue pants. Just a larger version to match her increased size.

"Hinata wont you come join me for Cinnamon rolls?" This made Hinata frown. She had long since given up on the treat as she needed the time to focus and train. Hinata shook her head and was going to close the door when Hinata saw a sight she longed for.

"Well maybe she will go when I am there huh?" The two females in attendance turned around to see the owner of the masculine voice. Both had mixed expressions for very different reasons.

Kurenai looked upon Naruto with an excited feeling but also a slightly abrasive one. Here was her former student looking exactly like son of the Sannin that he was. The missing nin his father was and she couldn't help but to feel a bit of malice due to that.

Hinata was ecstatic. The boy that gave her so much confidence and love when she was young is back. Never mind how he looked. Sure it was slightly creepy and a little eerie but it sounded like Naruto so that is who it must be. She let out an "Eep" that made her seem like the little girl she once was.

Needless to say the trio picked back up as if nothing had ever happened.

-

**Sorry to cut it off here folks, I figured with my absence being so long I would atleast give you all something after so long. Next chapter will be the second part of this chapter and will finish out what the summary is about. Till next time!**


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